Daily
Herald
THE BROWN
vol. cxlviii, no. 46
INSIDE
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Spicy with
The sandwich with a kick touts an intricate backstory
U. examines hands-on methods of teaching intro STEM As innovation in science pedagogy becomes a national priority, the University continues to explore new approaches to STEM education By SAHIL LUTHRA SCIENCE & RESEARCH EDITOR
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Money majors Rise in concentrators strains economics department Page 11
Brush it off Lecture highlights liberating nature of calligraphy today
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tomorrow
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since 1891
FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
Several strategic planning committees were created last fall to shape the longterm goals for President Christina Paxson’s tenSTEM 0010 Part 4 of 4 ure. The formation of one such committee — the An examination of introductory science Committee on courses at Brown Educational Innovation — underscored the University’s goal to lead in higher education in developing education techniques and philosophies, particularly in science, technology, engineering and math. The University’s emphasis on improving science education builds on efforts undertaken in recent years and could reshape how introductory science is taught at Brown.
Experiments in education Last summer’s version of CHEM 0350: “Organic Chemistry” bore little resemblance to the structure of the course during the school year. Rather than going to lectures, students attended problem-based workshops in the Science Center, tackling topics like tautomerization in small groups under supervision of teaching assistants. The change developed after professors noticed that students enrolled in summer CHEM 0350 passed the second course on the subject, CHEM 0360: “Organic Chemistry,” at a lower rate than did those who took CHEM 0350 in the spring, said Andrew Silverman ’14, who has been an organic chemistry TA both during the summer and during the school year. Though lectures could conceivably work in the school year, they were less effec/ / Innovation page 4 tive in the
MIKE COHEA / BROWN UNIVERSITY
New biology courses, such as BIOL 0190R: “Phage Hunters,” which was introduced in 2011, have emphasized lab work and tactile learning.
Advisory committee votes to Poll results shed light on Assistant recommend coal divestment U. affairs and student life Secretary Paxson will present the divest recommendation at the Corporation’s meeting in May By HANNAH LOWENTHEIL SENIOR STAFF WRITER
The Advisory Committee on Corporate Responsibility in Investment Policies endorsed University divestment from the nation’s 15 largest coal companies yesterday afternoon, Brown Divest Coal and ACCRIP members confirmed. “We are still finalizing the text to send to (President Christina Paxson), which contains our reasons for recommendation and proposed guidelines for screening companies we invest in,” said Ian Trupin ’13.5, a student member of ACCRIP and former Herald opinions
columnist. Paxson will receive the committee’s recommendation in the next few days, Trupin said, at which point the document will be posted on ACCRIP’s website for public access. Marisa Quinn, vice president for public affairs and University relations, said Paxson’s office “(looks) forward to ACCRIP’s recommendation on the matter of divestment” but said she would not comment further until the recommendation is made public. Paxson indicated that the Corporation will discuss coal divestment when it meets in May, according to a statement from Brown Divest Coal. Paxson will present ACCRIP’s recommendation to the Corporation, Trupin said. The Corporation has previously voted to divest from HEI Hotels, tobacco / / Coal page 2 companies and
Undergrads responded to questions about Paxson, alcohol, same-sex marriage and religion By MATHIAS HELLER AND ALEXANDRA MACFARLANE
from 28 percent of students in the fall. Over 20 percent of students reported attending a varsity sports game once in a typical semester. Almost 85 percent of students said they consumed alcohol in the past year, and over 25 percent reported using marijuana in the same period.
UNIVERSITY NEWS EDITORS
Over 90 percent of students support the legalization of same-sex marriage in Rhode Island, according to a Herald poll conducted March 13-14. More than 60 percent of students support the recent creation of a School of Public Health, approved by the Corporation in February. Student approval for President Christina Paxson has also increased since last semester, with nearly half of students stating approval for her handling of the presidency, an increase
The marriage plot A decisive majority of students expressed support for expanding the definition of marriage in Rhode Island to include same-sex couples. Among those surveyed, 82 percent strongly agreed with legalizing same-sex marriage in the state, while fewer than 9 percent somewhat agreed with doing so. Five percent of students have no opinion on the proposed legalization of same-sex / / Poll page 6
Top 10 concentrations claim over half of students
By MOLLY SCHULSON SENIOR STAFF WRITER
The University offers 79 concentrations, but 54 percent of concentrations completed in 2012 represented the 10 most popular concentrations that year, according to data obtained by The Herald from the Office of Institutional Research. Economics has been the most popular concentration since 2009, followed by biological sciences and international relations, according to the data, which spans from 1984 to 2012. Nine of the top 10 concentrations in 2012 were in life sciences, social sciences or physical
sciences, with English the lone humanities representative. Social sciences concentrations constituted 39.8 percent of those completed in 2012, life sciences represented 21.5 percent, humanities were 20.8 percent, physical sciences covered 17.6 percent and independent concentrations made up the remaining 0.3 percent. Growth in the market The most popular concentration in 2012 was economics, with 220 degrees — not including joint concentrations the Department of Economics offers with other departments — being completed, wrote Louis Putterman, director of undergraduate studies in the economics department, in an email to The Herald. “The growth after 2008 or 2009 has been particularly substantial,” he wrote. / / Degrees page 8 Student
See pages 8 -9 for spotlights on concentration trends
Concentrations by academic division, 1984-2012
50% Percent of concentrations completed
Economics, biological sciences and international relations lead most popular fields
Social Sciences
40%
30%
Humanities
20%
Life Sciences
10%
Physical Sciences
0%
1985
1990
1995
2000
2005
2010
GREG JORDAN-DETAMORE / HERALD
Social sciences have been the most popular division since at least 1984, with life sciences and physical sciences increasing in recent years.
of State talks policy Jacobson ’82 discussed her work in Latin America and the direction of the U.S. under John Kerry By MICHAEL DUBIN STAFF WRITER
Successful foreign policy must transcend threat response and capitalize on cooperative opportunities, said Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Roberta Jacobson ’82 in a lecture at the Watson Institute for International Affairs Thursday. Jacobson, whom Vice President for International Affairs Matthew Gutmann introduced as “the highest U.S. diplomat responsible for Latin America,” spoke about the State Department’s work in Latin America and the Caribbean and its direction under new Secretary of State John Kerry to an audience of around 40 people. Jacobson’s appointment as assistant secretary in 2012 marked both the first time a woman has held the position and the first time a civil service employee has filled the post instead of a foreign service officer, she said, adding that she has served overseas twice. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton often expressed that foreign policy “is all about threats,” Jacobson said, but “if foreign policy is only about threats and not about opportunities, we have missed a whole section of what foreign policy should be.” “In my view, our foreign policy in the Western hemisphere right now is a lot more about opportunities than it is about threats,” Jacobson said. President / / State page 12
2 university news
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
C ALENDAR TODAY
APRIL 5
7 P.M.
TOMORROW
APRIL 6
8 P.M. Attitude Spring Show
Fermata Concert
Alumnae Hall
The Underground
11 P.M.
8:30 P.M. Funk Night
High n’Stoned Concert
The Underground
MacMillan 117
MENU SHARPE REFECTORY
VERNEY-WOOLLEY
LUNCH Chicken Broccoli Alfredo Pasta, Vegan Quinoa Stuffed Portabella, Green Beans, Onion Rings, Caesar Chicken
Chicken Fingers, Vegan Nuggets, Baked Potatoes, Baked Beans, Nacho Bar, Green Beans, Rice Krispie Treats
DINNER Gnocchi, Pork and Potato Rosti, Mashed Potatoes, Vegetable Popover, Chocolate Marshmallow Roll
Braised Rainbow Swiss Chard, Veggie and Beef Stirfry, Roasted Baby Carrots, Gnocchi, Sausage Chowder
SUDOKU LYDIA YAMAGUCHI / HERALD
The student group Brown Divest Coal played a significant role in prompting the investment advisory committee to vote to recommend coal divestment, according to a student member on ACCRIP. Herald file photo.
/ / Coal page 1
CROSSWORD
companies profiting from Darfur after receiving recommendations from ACCRIP to divest. ACCRIP might advise divestment if it is likely to change the company for the better or if a company’s activity is deemed so harmful that profiting from its business contradicts the University’s ethical principles, Trupin said. He added that the latter justification — coal’s effects on global warming — prompted the committee’s recommendation to divest. “Brown Divest Coal has impacted
our decision a lot,” Trupin said. “They were very helpful in providing information for our consideration.” Last semester, Brown Divest Coal sent ACCRIP “a letter expressing our ethical imperative and reasoning for divestment,” said member Rachel Bishop ’13. ACCRIP then used the group’s research in conjunction with its own findings. “ACCRIP made their decision because they recognized that coal is a very nasty industry and the University shouldn’t be profiting from it,” said Emily Kirkland ’13, another member of Brown
Legislating
SAME-SEX MARRIAGE All eyes on Rhode Island APRIL 23 / 4:00 PM MacMillan Hall, Starr Auditorium 167 Thayer Street Free and open to the public www.brown.edu/taubman-center
www.browndailyherald.com 195 Angell St., Providence, R.I. Shefali Luthra, President Samuel Plotner, Treasurer Lucy Feldman, Vice President Julia Kuwahara, Secretary The Brown Daily Herald (USPS 067.740) is an independent newspaper serving the Brown University community daily since 1891. It is published Monday through Friday during the academic year, excluding vacations, once during Commencement and once during Orientation by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. Single copy free for each member of the community. POSTMASTER please send corrections to P.O. Box 2538, Providence, RI 02906. Periodicals postage paid at Providence, R.I. Subscription prices: $280 one year daily, $140 one semester daily. Copyright 2013 by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. All rights reserved. EDITORIAL
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Divest Coal. According to a press release from Brown Divest Coal, the University’s investments in these 15 coal companies total less than $2 million. Quinn previously told The Herald the University’s holdings in the companies make up less than 0.1 percent of its total investments. Brown Divest Coal has been actively campaigning for the University to divest from fossil fuels. “We’ve generated a huge amount of student, faculty and alumni support to convey the message that (divestment) is important,” Kirkland said.
arts & culture 3
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
‘Spicy with’ boasts long and storied history as Josiah’s staple The chicken sandwich contains 40 percent of the daily recommended saturated fat By SOPHIE YAN STAFF WRITER
Crispy on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside, a fried chicken patty is smothered in melted cheese and drizzled in a special spicy sauce. All garnished with lettuce and tomato and served on a chewy hamburger bun. The spicy with, as it is affectionately called, is served at Josiah’s Cafe and known as a widely loved latenight treat for many carnivorous Brown students. Only open from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. and primarily considered a late-night eatery, Jo’s features various items including sandwiches, quesadillas, chopped salads and mozzarella sticks on its menu. But even with the plethora of options available, the spicy with remains one of the most iconic selections. “We believe it debuted as a special around 1997,” wrote Sean DeBobes, assistant manager of retail operations at Jo’s, in an email to The Herald. “It was an instant hit and soon made its way onto the permanent menu.” There is a correlation between drinking alcohol and late night consumption of foods high in fat — such as spicies with — according to a study by Elizabeth Lloyd-Richardson, assistant professor of psychiatry and human behavior at the Alpert Medical School. “Eating patterns for a significant number of college students are altered before, during and following drinking episodes,” the study read. A significant number of Lloyd-Richardson’s subjects, all college students, reported overeating and making unhealthy
dietary choices after consumption of alcohol, according to the study. “On typical drunk nights (Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays) the grill station is definitely more popular than the salad station,” wrote Mike Bohl ’11, unit manager for the Brown University Dining Services at Jo’s, in an email to The Herald. “Whether people are buying spicies or just loading up on mozzarella sticks though, I can’t say.” But the spicy with, despite common conceptions, is not the most popular item at Jo’s, wrote Aaron Fitzhenry, culinary manager for retail operations, in an email to The Herald. “They consistently represent around 30 percent of all items sold at the grill …(but) salads outsell them every day of the week.” Still, the sandwich has a strong following. Broghan Zwack ’16, a selfdescribed Jo’s frequenter, said she “lives for spicy withs.” “There was this time I got a spicy with five nights in a row,” she added. “It’s delicious.” Bryant Estrada ’13 also said he enjoys spicies with, adding that he decided to give them up for Lent but recently started eating them again and appreciates them more than ever. “I usually eat about two a week,” he said. “It’s a classic,” said Yao Liu ’15, who said he savors his sandwich with the bourbon and spicy sauces. But Elizabeth Goodspeed ’16, a dual-degree student in her second year, disagreed. Describing the sandwich as too spicy and “kind of dry,” Goodspeed said she is disappointed that the other hot food stations at Jo’s close after 11 p.m. or midnight. “If the only thing they’re offering from (midnight) to 2 (a.m.) is mozzarella sticks and French fries, I think it’s setting a bad example,” Goodspeed said, noting the health ramifications of such fried foods.
TOM SULLIVAN / HERALD
The iconic spicy with sandwich, which headlines a menu of late-night fried food options, remains widely popular despite health concerns. While many students said they don’t know the specific nutrition information, the spicy with weighs in at 560 calories and contains 40 percent of a person’s daily saturated fat and 67 percent of daily sodium, Ann Hoffman, director of administration of Brown Dining Services, wrote in an email to The Herald. Zwack said she is aware of the health risks of the sandwich and de-
scribes herself as relatively healthconscious, but she said she finds it difficult to resist the sandwich’s allure. “My problem is that when I’m going to the salad bar, I always walk past the grill,” she said. “Seeing the spicy with … as you’re going to the salad bar (is) so depressing.” Liu also acknowledged the spicy with is not a healthy option. “I don’t
know the nutrition facts, but I’d rather not,” he said, describing the sandwich as a personal “guilty pleasure.” Lorin Smith ’15 also chooses spicies with despite the potential health consequences. “I’m definitely going to die young because of these,” she said. “It’s like a patty full of hormones, sodium, breading … (who knows) what else is in there.”
4 stem 0010 / / Innovation page 1 condensed summer schedule. “The summer actually forced selfownership,” Silverman said. “Students would sit at tables and literally have to work on a problem by talking about it dynamically. They weren’t passively engaged with the material like they would be in lecture. That’s something that’s just super important.” Other courses in the near future will test non-traditional structures. This fall, the Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning will pilot a discussion-based version of ECON 1110: “Intermediate Microeconomics,” The Herald reported last month. Integrative classes specifically for students in the Program in Liberal Medical Education — which will launch fall 2014 — could help the University become a leader in pre-medical education reform, Associate Dean of Medical Education Philip Gruppuso told The Herald last month. In 2009, the Association of American Medical Colleges and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute published a report emphasizing the need for integrative, interdisciplinary courses for pre-med students. New approaches to teaching introductory science classes could help lower attrition rates in STEM fields, according to a 2011 report by the Association of American Universities. For many institutions, “the focus of keeping students interested in science is a low priority,” said Mitchell Chang, a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles who studies trends in higher education. “So you have to raise that priority, and once you do, you start to shape your curriculum differently.” While few institutions have restructured science curricula in this way so far, results look promising, Chang
change was motivated by an increase in enrollment and student feedback. New biology courses have emphasized lab work and hands-on learning. In 2011, the University introduced the year-long course BIOL 0190R: “Phage Hunters,” in which first-year students isolated viruses and analyzed their DNA, participating in active research while learning introductory lab techniques, The Herald reported last year. Though the class was designed and funded by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Associate Dean of the College for Science and Director of the Science Center David Targan told The Herald at the time it could potentially be retained at Brown in the long term. “Having that much more visceral experience using all the senses — it’s impossible not to be engaged in it, whereas it’s easy to zone out in a lecture,” Targan told The Herald last year. “There’s just a lot of evidence to show that that’s the best way people learn and the best way to keep people interested.” Multiple pathways In its interim report published January, the Committee on Educational Innovation outlined several proposals for developing science pedagogy, advocating new introductory courses, interdisciplinary initiatives and integrative pre-med courses like the one being piloted this fall. “We have to continue to develop new ways to reach all of our students,” said Dean of the College Katherine Bergeron, who is chairing the committee. “We need a variety of pathways.” One way the committee envisions this is through an array of “Gateways to Science” courses in each discipline, which would introduce students to STEM disciplines through hands-on classes focused on real-world problem
“The focus of keeping students interested in science is a low priority.”
Mitchell Chang UCLA professor and higher education expert
said, citing examples from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the California Institute of Technology. “These classes are smaller and taught in a way with application to real-life issues,” he said. “But (students) are learning the fundamental knowledge in ways that the instructors intentionally apply to real-world problems.” Curricular changes at Brown have been born of circumstance-specific factors — a compressed time frame in the case of summer CHEM 0350 — as well as ideological factors. Last fall, the School of Engineering broke ENGN 0030: “Introduction to Engineering” into smaller problem-based sections, significantly reducing the amount of time spent in a large lecture, The Herald reported at the time. The
solving, according to the interim report. Other introductory classes that emphasize data analysis, computer programming and scientific literacy could offer additional entry points into the sciences. By pairing courses that deal with similar topics in different ways, the committee hopes to get students “really thinking about knowledge and thinking about the ways in which different disciplines are tackling the same questions,” said committee member Peter Johnson ’13. Under this system, students might enroll in two courses — an archaeology course in the fall and a materials science course in the spring, for instance — that facilitate discussion of issues relevant to both fields. “Obviously that would take some
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
Next year’s science first-year seminars Fall 2013: ▶▶ BIOL 0190E: “Botanical Roots of Modern Medicine” ▶▶ BIOL 0190F: “Darwinian Medicine” ▶▶ BIOL 0190P: “Development of Scientific Theories: Context and the Individual” ▶▶ BIOL 0190Q: “Climate Change and Species Extinction” ▶▶ BIOL 0190R: “Phage Hunters, Part I” ▶▶ BIOL 0190U: “Plant Development, Structure and Function” ▶▶ CHEM 0080B: “Molecular Structures in Chemistry and Biology” ▶▶ CLPS 0050A: “Computing as Done in Brains and Computers” ▶▶ CLPS 0050B: “The Two Visual Systems: Visual Perception and Control of Action” ▶▶ GEOL 0160C: “Global Environmental Change” ▶▶ GEOL 0160N: “Monsters of the Abyss: Oceanography and Sea Tales” ▶▶ PHP 0040: “Addiction: The Causes, Cures and Consequences of Substance Abuse in Modern Society”
Spring 2014: ▶▶ BIOL 0150A: “Techniques and Analyses using DNA-Based Biotechnology” ▶▶ BIOL 0150C: “Methods for Extraction and Analyzing Secondary Metabolites of Medicinal Plants” ▶▶ BIOL 0150D: “Techniques in Regenerative Medicine: Cells, Scaffolds and Staining” ▶▶ BIOL 0190S: “Phage Hunters, Part II” ▶▶ BIOL 0190U: “Plant Development, Structure and Function” ▶▶ CLPS 0050I: “Art and Science of Learning” ▶▶ PHP 0030: “Health of Hispaniola” ▶▶ PHYS 0100: “Flat Earth to Quantum Uncertainty: On the Nature and Meaning of Scientific Explanation”
faculty resources,” Johnson said. “It’s not like co-teaching, but it would take collaboration outside of the department.” Though not explicitly addressed in the committee’s report, innovation will be tied to the question of online education. The University will pilot online courses this summer, and a separate strategic planning committee convened last semester to examine how online education might influence Brown’s future. Limited resources But committee discussions of the University’s future were not influenced by questions of its resources, Johnson said. Evaluating feasibility remains a task for Paxson, Provost Mark Schlissel P’15 and the Corporation over the next several months. But given the resources currently available — manpower and space being chief concerns — dramatic curricular reform is not possible, said Robert Pelcovits, professor of physics. Though it would be “ideal” to integrate more problem-solving elements into classes, “it’s just not feasible,” said Sarah Taylor, instructional coordinator and science learning specialist at the Science Center, who co-taught organic chemistry last summer. Adopting the summer format of organic chemistry for the academic year would require a substantial number of TAs, Silverman said, adding that the number of TAs recently dropped from 14 to 6 due to funding constraints. Large-scale changes can be costly in terms of space. When MIT launched a technology-assisted effort to make introductory physics more discussionbased, renovating two classrooms to make them conducive to discussion cost $3 million, according to the project’s website.
If it ain’t broke... Concerns with introductory science courses can largely be addressed with small-scale changes, many instructors said. Though smaller classes are often seen as better, there are “enough exceptions to that rule,” Targan said. Students who work to establish relationships with professors can benefit greatly even in a lecture class, Targan said, though it is the student’s responsibility to forge that relationship. Jan Tullis, professor of geological sciences who co-teaches GEOL 0220: “Physical Processes in Geology,” said drop-in hours are important for success in her class. Rather than simply answering questions, Tullis said she aims to “coach and guide” her students. As a coordinator for group tutoring and other resources in the Science Center, Taylor said she has found many students do not seek the assistance they need. “They’re used to being successful academically because that’s why they’re here,” Taylor said. “A lot of them are reluctant to look for help. They think they’re self-sufficient or that they should be self-sufficient. So they are reluctant, embarrassed, ashamed — I’m not quite sure what it is.” Targan cited iClickers — remotes students use to answer multiple choice questions with the results immediately tabulated on the instructor’s computer — as effective teaching tools in large introductory lectures. iClickers provide “more opportunities for the instructor to understand much earlier in the class period what people understand,” Targan said. “It used to be that you could actually go for weeks and then have your first test … and realize that people were lost.” But iClickers may not be enough to
This series will investigate introductory science courses at Brown, examining what draws students to a field, why they lose interest and how classes at Brown might change as the nation experiments with different styles of teaching science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). You can read the entire series online at thebdh.org/stem.
STEM 0010
Tuesday: The University has identified the quality of STEM courses as a priority in recent years. Class sizes can pose pedagogical challenges, and departments use many strategies to maximize the impact of introductory lectures. Wednesday: While many students are drawn to the life sciences, few take electives in the physical sciences. This story explores what draws a student to an introductory STEM class.
An examination of introductory science courses at Brown
Yesterday: Not everyone who takes introductory courses continues to take STEM classes. This article examines the reasons students change their minds and claims of “weeding” in pre-medical and engineering courses. Today: The final story in the series examines pedagogical experiments undertaken at Brown and recommendations for future changes made by the Committee on Educational Innovation.
make a class feel more intimate, said Victoria Ferreira ’14, a pre-med student. “I don’t think using an iClicker was that helpful at all. It just made me pay attention for the first 20 minutes until (professors) asked the clicker question.” Ferreira added that it can be “super intimidating” to ask a question in a class with hundreds of students. Varying the types of assessments can also solve many concerns, Bergeron said, citing research-based writing assignments as alternatives to exams. ‘Too big to ignore’ Identifying alternative forms of pedagogy in introductory STEM classes is critical for the nation’s growth, according to the 2011 AAU report, which states that scientific literacy is vital for both science and humanities students. “A lot of places are going to be experimenting,” Johnson said. “And there’s a lot of federal funding out there for people who can ‘solve’ these issues in higher education today. And it’s kind of too big to ignore them.” Given its desire to be at the forefront of educational innovation, the University must move carefully, Johnson said. There is “an understanding that if we move too fastidiously into one area without really seeing — without really testing and seeing its effects — then that’s a bad thing,” he said. Johnson said he does not think the University will heavily favor one model of education over another and will instead opt for a variety of approaches. Bergeron said she envisions the curriculum being adapted gradually, as pilot initiatives are scaled up. “It’s quite possible that looking down the road 10 years … there could be other modalities that help to transform the idea of the large lecture so that students could be working in more lab-like settings, discussion-based lablike settings,” Bergeron said. “Maybe the idea of the entry-level science course could actually reverse itself, so that the lecture became less of the focus and the lab became more. But that would mean reorganizing the way we currently do things.” -Additional reporting by Jessica Brodsky, Phoebe Draper and Kate Nussenbaum
arts & culture 5
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
Attitude’s high-energy show integrates varied dance styles The spring show aims to engage audience members with props and live instruments By RILEY DAVIS STAFF WRITER
Attitude Dance Company’s ninth annual spring show premieres tonight with a colorful and successful display that highlights both the diverse talent of the dancers and student-choreographers and advanced multimedia work. The show features several different styles of dance including jazz, hiphop, contemporary and performances with cultural influences. This variety comprises constantly shifting music, costumes and lighting, all of which help keep the audience engaged and entertained. The dance company, founded in 2004, is one of the younger troupes on Brown’s campus, but that has not stopped its members from trying new performance elements and pushing limits with challenging choreography. In the show, the company innovates through collaborations, props and music, all of which add to the performance. “We’re doing a lot of collaborations this year,” Attitude co-director Hyunwoo Choo ’13 said. “This year is our second (collaboration) with imPulse Dance Company, there’s going to be an orchestra and a vocalist, and we’re using a lot more props.” The addition of imPulse dancers to one of the pieces enhances the number’s storyline and helps transition to the second half of the show. The live music adds another dimension to the pieces. “I think people will be very surprised by the instruments right in front of them,” said co-director Susan Trinh ’13. “When we’re creating the order of the show, we think about the audience and what they’re feel-
ing and want to provide them with an experience that they might not see every day.” Attitude also integrates a series of creative props into the show. A traditional Chinese cultural work choreographed by co-director Rosemary Le ’13 incorporates sparkling fans, while a contemporary piece centers around a swath of gauze, which the dancers move in and out of. The props ensnare the audience’s attention from the first beats of the pieces and provide a sense of continuity during the numbers. Lady Gaga — whose “Americano” is featured in a work with vibrant flamenco skirts — is only one of the variety of artists featured in Attitude’s show. “Since we keep it open for our dancers to choose whatever they want to dance (to), the music ranges along with it,” Trinh said. While the wellknown tracks establish a tone from the beginning of the piece, lesserknown tracks add elements of surprise to the dances. The 22-person dance company stuck to the theme of innovation this year by admitting its first two male dancers in recent years. Despite the founder of Attitude being male, the group has remained all female for the last several years. “We have never been intentionally exclusively female. This is the first year that it happened that boys joined the group,” Choo said. “When we were first talking about letting (male dancers) in, there was a lot of discussion about how that would change the dynamic of the group,” Trinh added. “But they fit right in.” The two male dancers add another layer of depth to many of the pieces by bringing variation and a certain strength. Along with the male element, creative lighting and captivating choreography make the full company pieces — in which all of the company members are on stage — some of the
EVAN THOMAS / HERALD
Attitude collaborated with imPulse Dance Company, an orchestra and a vocalist to put on this semester’s show. The 22-member dance company includes male dancers for the first time in recent years. most entertaining in the show. The lengths of performances vary, which means the audience must watch carefully to catch the intricate details
in the shorter pieces. But the variation in length keeps the two-hour show from seeming overly long. The shows will take place tonight
and tomorrow at 7 p.m. in Alumnae Hall. Tickets are on sale for $5 in J. Walter Wilson until 2 p.m. today and will be available at the door for $7.
6 university news RESULTS AND ME THODOLOGY Full poll results 1. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Christina Paxson is handling her job as president of the University? 11.9% Strongly approve 32.7% Somewhat approve 48.9% No opinion 5.3% Somewhat disapprove 1.3% Strongly disapprove 2. If you are a sophomore, junior or senior, where did you meet most of the people you currently live with? If you are a first-year, where did you meet most of the people you plan to live with next year? (Circle all that apply) 35.2% First-year unit with me 21.7% Team/student group with me 19.2% Shared classes and academic settings 35.5% Through other friends 10.2% Fraternity/sorority/program house 3.1% Random assignment 8.8% Other (live alone, went abroad, etc.) 7.9% Not applicable 3. Last month the Corporation voted to create a School of Public Health. Do you approve of this decision? 35.9% Strongly approve 29.4% Somewhat approve 22.9% No opinion 3.6% Somewhat disapprove 0.9% Strongly disapprove 7.2% Not familiar enough to answer 4. In the past year, which of the following substances have you used recreationally? (Circle all that apply) 84.7% Alcohol 48.7% Marijuana 25.6% Tobacco 5.7% Prescription painkillers 5.3% Amphetamines (including prescription stimulants) 6.3% Cocaine 9.2% Ecstasy (MDMA) 6.5% Psychedelic mushrooms 4.5% LSD 1.3% Other (including opiates, heroin, PCP, etc.) 0.5% Don’t know 13.1% None of the above 5. Rhode Island should legalize same-sex marriage. 82.3% Strongly agree 8.8% Somewhat agree 5.0% No opinion 1.4% Somewhat disagree 2.5% Strongly disagree 6. If the University offered minors, would you pursue one? 60.6% Yes, and I think the University should offer minors
15.9% Yes, but I do not think the University should offer minors 10.0% No opinion 6.2% No, but I think the University should offer minors 7.3% No, and I do not think the University should offer minors 7. In a typical semester, how often do you attend a varsity sports game? 4.0% More than once per week 6.4% Once per week 7.8% Once every two weeks 13.8% Once per month 22.4% Once per semester 14.4% Less than once per semester 31.2% Never 8. In a typical semester, how often do you attend on-campus extracurricular events in the performing or visual arts, such as plays, a cappella concerts or dance performances? 6.5% More than once per week 12.2% Once per week 20.8% Once every two weeks 34.6% Once per month 15.9% Once per semester 5.1% Less than once per semester 4.9% Never 9. How have your religious views shifted since you came to Brown? 42.2% They haven’t — I did not practice a religion before and I do not now 28.7% They haven’t — I have practiced the same religion with the same commitment 9.5% I now practice the same religion with more commitment 11.9% I now practice the same religion with less commitment 1.4% I now practice a different religion than I did before coming to Brown 1.1% I now practice a religion but I did not before coming to Brown 5.2% I now do not practice a religion but I did before coming to Brown 10. Have you ever had sex (genital touching, oral, anal, vaginal) under these conditions? (Circle all that apply) 53.1% I was intoxicated 7.6% I wanted to say no but didn’t object 13.8% I did not explicitly say yes or no 8.9% I felt obligated to do the same with my partner as before 41.4% My partner was intoxicated 2.6% I hoped my partner wouldn’t say anything 2.0% My partner gave mixed signals about consent 10.9% I assumed we would do the same as we did before 41.2% I have not been in any of these situations
Methodology Written questionnaires were administered to 1,202 undergraduates March 13-14 in the lobby of J. Walter Wilson and the Stephen Robert ’62 Campus Center during the day and the Sciences Library at night. The poll has a 2.55 percent margin of error with 95 percent confidence. The margin of error is 3.9 percent for the subset of males, 3.4 percent for females, 5.1 percent for first-years, 4.7 percent for sophomores, 5.4 percent for juniors, 5.2 percent for seniors, 3.8 percent for students receiving financial aid, 3.4 percent for students not receiving financial aid, 6.46 percent for varsity athletes and 2.8 percent for non-athletes. The sample polled was demographically similar to the Brown undergraduate population as a whole. The sample was 43 percent male and 56 percent female. First-years made up 25 percent of the sample, 28 percent were sophomores, 22 percent were juniors and 24 percent were seniors. Varsity athletes made up 15 percent of the sample. Of those polled, 44 percent currently receive financial aid from Brown. Students reported all races with which they identify, with 62 percent saying white, 22 percent Asian, 11 percent Hispanic, 10 percent black, 0.8 percent American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.8 percent Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander and 3 percent other. Statistical significance was established at the 0.05 level. All reported cross-tabulations are statistically significant. University News Editors Alexandra Macfarlane ’13 and Mathias Heller ’15, Strategic Director Greg Jordan-Detamore ’14, Data Science Editor Andersen Chen ’14, Arts & Culture Editor Maddie Berg ’15, City & State Editor Adam Toobin ’15 and Senior Staff Writers Kiki Barnes ’16, Katie Cusumano ’15, Sabrina Imbler ’16, Hannah Loewentheil ’14 and Mark Valdez ’15 coordinated the poll. Herald section editors, senior staff writers and other staff members conducted the poll. Over the next several weeks, The Herald will publish a series of articles about individual poll questions. Find results of previous polls at thebdh.org/poll.
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
University Hall The Corporation voted in February to create a School of Public Health after a unanimous faculty vote in approval of the motion in November, The Herald previously reported. Poll results show almost 36 percent of students strongly approve of the creation of the new school, and nearly 30 percent somewhat approve. Close to a quarter of students had no opinion on this issue, and 7 percent said they were not familiar enough to answer. Four percent of students somewhat disapproved of the Corporation’s decision and just under 1 percent strongly disapproved. The school is currently seeking accreditation through national channels, The Herald reported in October. Approval of Paxson has grown since last semester — nearly 45 percent of students stated approval of Paxson, up from 28 percent last semester, according to poll results. Paxson convened six committees to direct the course of strategic planning for her tenure, and the groups released preliminary results in January. Despite the increased level of approval, almost half of students reported no opinion on the way Paxson is handling her job as president. Though the University does not offer the option for students to pursue minors, more than 66 percent of students reported thinking the option should exist. Of that group, 60 percent would pursue a minor and just under 6 percent would not. Almost 16 percent of polled students said they do not think the University should offer the option, though they would pursue the option if it were available, and 7 percent answered negatively to both questions. Ten percent of students expressed no opinion. Females supported the existence and pursuit of minors at a higher rate, with more than 67 percent answering that they would both pursue a minor and think the option should be available.
Fewer than one in five students attend a varsity sports game at Brown more than once per month, with 8 percent attending a game once every two weeks, 6 percent attending once per week and 4 percent attending a game more than once per week. Students’ attendance at varsity sports games varies significantly between those who are varsity athletes and those who are not. Over 63 percent of students who said they are on a varsity sports team reported attending a game at least once every two weeks, while fewer than 10 percent of nonvarsity athletes do so. More than two-thirds of students attend an on-campus extracurricular event in the performing or visual arts at least once per month. Thirty-five percent of students indicated they attend one of these art-themed events once per month, 21 percent attend once every two weeks, 12 percent attend once per week and 7 percent attend more than once per week. Sixteen percent of students attend an on-campus extracurricular event in the arts once per semester, while 5 percent said they attend one of these events less than once per semester and 5 percent indicating they never attend. Over a third of students have members of their first-year housing unit in their current housing group. Thirty-five percent of students said they met most of the people they currently live with or are planning on living with next year through their first-year units, while 22 percent said they met most people in their housing groups through a student group or sports team. Nineteen percent of students said they met most of their housing group members through classes or shared academic settings, 36 percent met them through other friends, and 10 percent said they are in a fraternity, sorority or program house. Nine percent of students said they went into the housing lottery alone or studied abroad, 3 percent said they were in random assignment for housing and 8 percent said the housing question was not applicable. Over 70 percent of students said their religious preferences have not changed since coming to Brown. A plurality of students — 42 percent — said they do not currently practice a religion and did not do so before coming to the University. Twenty-nine percent of students said they practice the same religion with the same level of commitment as they did before entering Brown, while under 10 percent of students said they practice the same religion with more commitment, and 12 percent practice the same religion with less commitment. One percent of students practice a different religion since entering the University, while another 1 percent of students said they now practice a religion but did not do so before coming to the University. Five percent indicated they practiced a religion before enrolling but do not do so now.
Student life Two-thirds of students attend a varsity sports game at the University no more than once per semester, with 31 percent saying they never attend varsity sports games. Fourteen percent of students attend a varsity sports game less than once per semester, 22 percent of students attend a varsity sports game approximately once per semester and 14 percent said they attend a varsity sports game once per month.
Sex and drugs Almost 85 percent of students drank alcohol in the past year, according to poll results. Not all students reported alcohol consumption at the same rate — 79 percent of first-years and 90 percent of seniors have consumed alcohol this year. Fewer concentrators in the physical sciences — 79 percent — consumed alcohol than did students in other areas of study. Most students who have had / / Poll page 7
/ / Poll page 1 marriage in Rhode Island, 1 percent somewhat disagree and less than 3 percent strongly disagree. Under 4 percent of students reported being opposed to legalizing same-sex marriage in the state. The Rhode Island House of Representatives approved legislation in January legalizing same-sex marriage, but the Rhode Island Senate must also pass the bill before it can be signed into law by Gov. Lincoln Chafee ’75 P’14. Though a recent poll from the Taubman Center for Public Policy showed approximately 60 percent of Rhode Islanders favor legalizing same-sex marriage, the bill has remained dormant in the Senate Judiciary Committee, where it must be approved before proceeding to a full Senate vote, The Herald previously reported. Chafee has publicly indicated he intends to sign the bill if it is passed by both houses of the General Assembly.
university news 7
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
Poll: Majority of undergrads support School of Public Health
By SARAH PERELMAN SENIOR STAFF WRITER
More than two-thirds of undergraduates support the creation of the School of Public Health — approved by the Corporation in February — according to the Herald poll conducted last month. Over 4 percent of students did not support the school’s creation, with 3 percent somewhat disapproving and less than 1 percent strongly disapproving. Around 23 percent of students had no opinion, according to the poll, and over 7 percent responded that they did not know enough to answer the question. Class year, religion, sexual orientation and gender did not appear to influence student responses. “I approve 100 percent,” said Sasha Land ’15, a community health concentrator. She said she hopes the new school will generate more research opportunities and funding for undergraduates, adding that additional resources
could encourage more undergraduates to consider concentrating in the field. Public health is becoming a popular major throughout the country because it “sits at the interface of the biological sciences and the social sciences,” said Provost Mark Schlissel P’15. “Undergraduates love it.” Currently, more than 80 students concentrate in community health, and the number has increased each year for the past several years, said Terrie Wetle, associate dean of medicine for public health and public policy, who will become dean of the new school. Students not concentrating in public health have come to her to express support for the school as well, Wetle said. Other students, including engineering students and those in the Program for Liberal Medical Education, have expressed the desire to learn about the research opportunities available through the new school, she said. “I’m very excited about it because I want to concentrate in public health,” said Tammy Jiang ’16. The “focus on prevention and wellness” attracts her to the field because “people can learn about how to prevent diseases before the onset,” she said. Though most community health concentrators know about the new
Last month the Corporation voted to create a School of Public Health. Do you approve of this decision? Strongly approve
36%
Somewhat approve
29%
No opinion
23%
Somewhat disapprove
4%
Strongly disapprove
1%
Not familiar enough to answer
7%
JILLIAN LANNEY / HERALD
/ / Poll page 6 a drink in the past year reported also having sex while intoxicated, at a rate of 62 percent. Nearly half of students have used marijuana in the past year, though athletes reported less marijuana use than did their peers at only 40 percent, compared to nearly 49 percent in the general population. Like alcohol, more seniors have used marijuana in the past year than first-years — 55 percent compared to 43 percent, respectively. Males and humanities concentrators used marijuana most frequently, with both percentages at more than half. A quarter of students reported using tobacco this year, though male students smoked more than females, at 30 percent compared to 20 percent among female peers. Athletes and first-years have smoked less than other students this year, at under 20 percent for both groups. Just over 5 percent of students reported using prescription painkillers and amphetamines recreationally this year, though 8 percent of seniors said they used amphetamines in that time. Fewer athletes used ecstasy than their peers, at 5 percent versus 9 percent of students who are not varsity athletes. Just over 6 percent of students used psychedelic mushrooms, and 4.5
percent reported LSD use this year. Other substances, including opiates, heroin and PCP were used by 1 percent of students. Under 14 percent of students reported they had used none of the above substances, and less than 1 percent did not know which they had consumed. A majority of students have had sex while intoxicated, and 41 percent of students said they have had sex with an intoxicated partner. More athletes and seniors have had sex while intoxicated at 63 percent and 65 percent, respectively. Less than 10 percent of students said they wanted to say no but didn’t object in a sexual encounter, and 13 percent reported that they did not tell their partner yes or no explicitly. Only 2 percent of students have had sex when a partner had given mixed signals about consent, and almost 9 percent of students said they had sex when they felt obligated to do the same with their partner as they had in previous situations. More than 10 percent of students reported they had sex after assuming they would do the same thing with their partner as before, and 2 percent reported they had sex and hoped their partner wouldn’t say anything. Over 40 percent of students said they had not had sex under any of the above conditions.
school, the general student body does not seem to, Jiang said. Jonny Abrams ’15, a classics concentrator, said he heard about the school’s formation from a friend who is a public health master’s student. He said he supports having the school for the opportunities and additional funding it will give to concentrators and graduate students in public health. The new school can bolster the University’s reputation in public health, Wetle said, adding that the “applicant pool for graduate students will grow in size and quality.” Researchers will also be eligible for additional sources of funding that it cannot currently obtain as a department, she said. Many students who had not previously heard about the school expressed support for the creation when interviewed by the Herald. “I’m totally accepting of it,” said BEO concentrator Emily Waitt ’15, adding that she had not heard about the school until the interview but thought it sounded like a good idea. Many students said they did not feel the creation of the school goes against the University’s philosophy of liberal learning, though some said they saw this as a potential concern. “On paper (the school) sounds great, but then there’s also the issue of it taking away from our undergraduate education,” said Tom March ’14, an economics concentrator. He said he was concerned that the school could funnel resources into one specific area too much and would need more information before he could answer whether or not he supported the school’s formation. “It’s a nice step forward to some sort of pre-professionalism,” said Grant Drzyzga ’15, an international relations concentrator. Since the School of Public Health, just like the School of Engineering, is not completely separate from the college, it can help students on a path towards health careers without taking away from “Brown’s charm” as a liberal
SAM KASE / HERALD
Public health has become an increasingly popular field at the intersection of the biological and social sciences, said Provost Mark Schlissel P’15. arts school, he said. “I have faith in the people who are in control of these things,” said Michael Zamost ’14, a religious studies and economics concentrator, when asked if he was concerned about the effect on the Brown’s liberal education. Methodology Written questionnaires were administered to 1,202 undergraduates March 13-14 in the lobby of J. Walter Wilson and the Stephen Robert ’62
Campus Center during the day and the Sciences Library at night. The poll has a 2.55 percent margin of error with 95 percent confidence. The margin of error is 3.9 percent for the subset of males, 3.4 percent for females, 5.1 percent for first-years, 4.7 percent for sophomores, 5.4 percent for juniors, 5.2 percent for seniors, 3.8 percent for students receiving financial aid, 3.4 percent for students not receiving financial aid, 6.5 percent for varsity athletes and 2.8 percent for non-athletes.
Do you approve or disapprove of the way Christina Paxson is handling her job as president of the University? 49%
50 40 Percentage of students
Some students view the school’s formation as a step toward preprofessionalism
33%
30 20 12%
10 5%
0
1% Strongly approve
Somewhat approve
No opinion
Somewhat disapprove
Strongly disapprove JILLIAN LANNEY / HERALD
8 concentrations / / Degrees page 1 interest stems from “stories of large fortunes being made on Wall Street” or “genuine intellectual interest” about the economy’s inner workings, Putterman wrote. The recent recession has affected both the job market and concentration trends, said Thomas Doeppner, associate professor and vice chair of the Department of Computer Science, which had 54 completed concentrations in 2012. “The number of concentrators trailed economic events in recent years,” Doeppner said. “As the economy gets better, we get better.” The number of completed concentrations in computer science has seen two high points of more than 70 concentrators since 1984: in 1987 at 71, and again in the early 2000s, peaking in 2003 at 76, according to the data. Doeppner attributed the latter high point to the dot-com boom. Completed concentrations dropped to 27 in 2007, a dip that held through the recession with 28 degrees being earned in 2009, which Doeppner said reflected an incorrect belief that there were few job opportunities in computer science at that time. He added that the department expects 68 students to complete “pure” computer science degrees this year, which would be the highest number in a decade. Another growing concentration is Business, Entrepreneurship and Organizations, formerly known as Commerce, Organizations and Entrepreneurship. “We started with a handful of concentrators in the beginning, around
2005, and now we have 70 to 85 students the last few years,” said Brendan McNally, associate director of BEO. Concentrators end up doing a variety of things, including creating startups, he said. “Creating a company and having a lot of flexibility to do what you want is becoming more popular, and that’s true
are making fun of humanities, and I think that is very shortsighted,” he said. Forcing students to pay extra for a humanities degree “sends a terrible signal” to students and makes them feel penalized, he said. Placing a higher price tag on studying humanities shows a lack of understanding of how many employers are
“Students have a perception that certain concentrations are going to look better than others.”
Andrew Simmons Director of the Center for Careers and Life After Brown
among Brown students as well,” he said. Students may lean toward business or economics over humanities because the companies that make themselves visible through on-campus recruiting tend to represent those fields, McNally said. “I think students feel pressure to go for brand-name companies because they don’t realize there are other companies out there,” he said. Different disciplines The value of humanities degrees compared to sciences degrees has recently become a topic of national debate. Undergraduates in Florida may soon have to pay more in tuition to study some fields in the humanities than to study engineering or life sciences if Governor Rick Scott’s suggestions are taken up, the New York Times reported. Scott wants students to obtain more “job-friendly” degrees, according to the article. “I think it’s terribly misguided,” said Mark Cladis, chair of the Department of Religious Studies. “Some public officials
interested in liberal arts majors, said Andrew Simmons, director of the Center for Careers and Life After Brown. “I hope they do a little more research on what a college education has to offer and get out of this box that only the STEM fields are the ones that matter,” he said. In a speech to the National Humanities Alliance in Washington last month, President Christina Paxson declared that academics need to do a better job of defending the value of the humanities. “Support for the humanities is more than worth it,” she said in the speech. “It is essential.” Twenty years after the number of concentrations completed in religious studies peaked at 34 in 1991, the number dropped to 8 in 2011, according to the OIR data. Since then, it has risen again to 18 students in the class of 2012. One recent downward trend in the humanities has been the number of concentrators in comparative literature. In 1990, comparative literature peaked at
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
57 concentrations completed, according to the data. There were only 27 in 2012, but that number is expected to rise again to 40 for the class of 2013, department faculty members said. “I find that ... among my friends who are science concentrators, there’s a stigma against humanities concentrations, that they’re a joke,” said Allison Schaaff ’14, who is a pre-medical student concentrating in comparative literature. She added that she thinks people feel pressure not to concentrate in humanities because they believe such degrees may not lead to employment after college. “I didn’t feel completely free to concentrate in comparative literature until I decided I was also going to be a pre-med. I think my experience speaks to that pressure,” she said. Students are concerned about finding a job right after graduation, Cladis said. “They want to find a pretty direct route to that, so they’re tempted by concentrations that seem to provide that,” he said. Though social sciences are the largest discipline at Brown, another concentration that has seen a decline in the past few years is sociology, which fell from 44 concentrators in the class of 2007 to 14 concentrators each in the classes of 2010 and 2011. From 2011 to 2012, the number of completed life sciences and physical sciences concentrations increased by 76 and 62, respectively, according to the OIR data. The rising popularity of the neuroscience concentration contributed to the life sciences growth — 22 more students completed a neuroscience degree in 2012 than did in 2011. Since 1984, the number of completed
Explore the full set of concentrations data from 1984 to 2012 in an interactive graphic at thebdh.org/concentrations. neuroscience degrees has more than doubled, from 33 in 1984 to 85 in 2012. Many paths to success Georgetown University researchers released a report in 2011 that placed an economic value on different majors. Their analysis showed that while petroleum engineering majors made an average of $120,000 a year over the course of their careers, counseling psychology majors earned around $29,000 a year. But there is no way to tell if a concentration will lead to a high-paying career, Simmons said. “Students have a perception that certain concentrations are going to look better than others,” he said. “The reality is that employers are more interested in the variety of skills and experience you bring to the table.” Future career or financial concerns should not affect students’ “passions or choices,” Schaaff said. “When you go to Brown, what your major is doesn’t really matter in the long run. There are all kinds of ways to get your foot in the door.” No one can predict which courses of study will lead students to earn the highest salaries, Simmons said. “Most students at Brown that I’ve met are not talking about lucrative careers. They’re talking about meaningful careers.”
Neuroscience grows as U. emphasizes brain science research As a relatively new field, neuroscience has attracted interest both nationally and on campus By APARAAJIT SRIRAM STAFF WRITER
Over roughly the past 20 years, neuroscience has steadily strengthened its presence at Brown, boasting consistently growing numbers of undergraduate concentrators and centering around the Brown Institute for Brain Sciences, a premier research framework. President Obama unveiled a plan this week to commit at least $100 million to the brain sciences by 2014. “The most powerful computer in the world isn’t nearly as intuitive as the one we’re born with,” he said. Brown students interests seem to align with the president’s focus on understanding the brain — there were a record 85 neuroscience degrees earned in the class of 2012, the seventh time since 2000 that there were at least 60 concentrators in a graduating class, according to data obtained by The Herald from the Office of Institutional Research. In the class of 1994, there were only 21 neuroscience concentrators. “People are inherently fascinated with the brain,” said Professor of Neuroscience Barry Connors, chair of the department. “It’s not clear to me why anyone would study something other than the brain.” “It’s just really interesting how some random cells control our physical and emotional states,” said Carolina Santiago ’16, who said she will likely concentrate in neuroscience. “We kind of know how a lot of things work in
other sciences, but we don’t know as much about the brain, which makes it exciting.” Adam Loewentheil ’16, who is considering concentrating in neuroscience, wrote in an email to The Herald, “I’m considering neuro out of pure interest for the subject ... especially how emotions, drives and changes can be explained by what goes on on the microscopic level in our brains.” The department has also developed and sustained a reputation for highquality teaching, students said. Some students said they were especially drawn to the concentration for its faculty and staff. NEUR 0010: “The Brain: An Introduction to Neuroscience” has an almost 30-year-long history at Brown, and about 48 percent of Critical Review survey respondents in the class said they were not taking it to fulfill a requirement in fall 2011, the most recent semester for which the course’s data is available. But not all students were enthusiastic about their experiences in the department. NEUR 0010 is the only neuroscience class Cale Bonderman ’15 has taken, and he gave the course a mixed review. “The lectures were engaging and informational, but ... the amount of content and the arbitrary little stuff they tested for was completely ridiculous,” he said. “It’s an intro class, but they expect you to know every last detail.” Many neuroscience concentrators are also pre-medical students. Many of the requirements for the neuroscience
Sc.B. map neatly onto the prerequisites students need to fulfill to apply to med school, including background courses in physics, biology and organic chemistry. “The requirements for neuro and the requirements for pre-med are basically the same,” Santiago said. “And that way I can take more classes outside of my concentration while getting a science degree.” The concentration also offers a degree of flexibility, allowing for four electives related to neuroscience and encouraging “independent study and honors research projects,” according to the department’s website. Neuroscience is a relatively young field and “was barely on the radar when I was an undergraduate,” Connors said.
But newness seems to have given rise to the impression among students and academics, both in and out of Brown, of opportunity and growth. The University has invested in brain sciences research as one of its major initiatives over the past several years. The Sidney E. Frank Hall for Life Sciences, which cost $95 million, was constructed in 2006 to house the neuroscience department and the Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry. The building that houses the Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences — Metcalf Chemistry and Research Laboratory — underwent a $42 million renovation completed in
2012, The Herald previously reported. Beyond Brown, membership of the American Society of Neuroscience has increased to 42,000 this year, according to the society’s website, and reflects “the same growth trend” seen among Brown students, Connors said. Hand in hand with this phenomenon, the University is priming its brain sciences research program to stay at the forefront of the field in coming years. The Brown Institute for Brain Sciences, the multidisciplinary consortium of departments and faculty members conducting brain research at Brown, will raise $50 million for expansion and new investments in the next five years, The Herald previously reported.
Neuroscience concentrations completed, 1984-2012 100
85
80 60 40 33 20 0
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1990
1995
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2010 GREG JORDAN DETAMORE / HERALD
The number of neuroscience concentrators has risen steadily in the last 20 years, reflecting the University‘s growing focus on brain sciences research.
concentrations 9
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
Number of sociology concentrators on the rise after precipitous drop Half of current concentrators double concentrate in sociology and another field By ALEXANDER BLUM STAFF WRITER
The Department of Sociology has seen a decline in concentrators from 44 in the class of 2007 to 17 in the class of 2012, according to data obtained by The Herald from the Office of Institutional Research, but sociology faculty members and students indicated topics in sociology are being explored through different concentration programs. Though there has been a 61 percent drop in sociology concentrations completed in the past five years, the C.V. Starr Program in Business, Entrepreneurship and Organizations has attracted more students who may have previously been drawn to concentrating in sociology, said Michael Kennedy, professor of sociology and international studies. “We’re moving back up,” Kennedy said, noting that the class of 2012 had three more sociology concentrators completing degrees than the classes of 2011 and 2010, each of which had 14. Those years accounted for the lowest number of sociology degrees earned in recent history and represented a large drop from the mid-2000s. Twenty sociology concentrators plan to graduate this spring, and there are currently 30 juniors concentrating in the department, Kennedy wrote in an email to The Herald. The BEO program is sponsored by the departments of sociology and economics and the School of Engineering. BEO seeks to teach students “the methodological approaches of economics, sociology, engineering and entrepreneurship,” ac-
cording to the program’s website. From 2007-2008, the number of sociology degree recipients declined from 44 to 21, the single largest drop in the department’s concentrators since at least 1985, according to the data, which spans from 1984 to 2012. But this sharp decline was accompanied by large growth in BEO’s precursor, the former Commerce, Organizations and Entrepreneurship concentration, which saw a jump from ten concentrations completed in the class of 2007 to 50 in the class of 2008. These changes accounted for a net increase of 17 students who earned degrees in sociology-related disciplines, Kennedy said. “We shouldn’t only be thinking about sociology,” Kennedy said, linking the rise in BEO concentrators to an increase in overall interest in sociology. But some students said they were more drawn to BEO because of the concentration’s broader coverage of fields that extend beyond sociology. “BEO offers a little more of an economics background,” said Matt Garofalo ’15, a BEO concentrator, calling the program more well-rounded than sociology. Though Garofalo said he still takes sociology courses as part of his concentration, he added that BEO appeals to many students because it “covers a much wider field” than sociology. Wendy Rogers ’14, a sociology concentrator involved with the sociology Departmental Undergraduate Group, said there is sometimes a perception that a sociology degree is “not very marketable” and dismissed as “softer” than a degree in BEO. But she disputed the accuracy of this view. “It’s never going to hurt to get a better understanding of how the world works,” she said. Doubts about sociology’s marketability persist among students. “I think BEO strikes people as more practical than sociology,” wrote Steven Adler ’15, an
Sociology concentrations completed, 1984-2012
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44
(2007)
40 30 20 10 0
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11
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1990
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The concentration in sociology has lost concentrators to the program in business, entrepreneurship and organizations, multiple faculty members in the department said. economics concentrator, in an email to The Herald. Adler wrote he believed students who initially explore economics and statistics courses are often drawn to BEO because the program does not have many additional requirements outside these departments. Students assume that compared to a sociology concentration, a degree in BEO “will be taken more seriously,” Adler wrote. Rogers said the sociology DUG is working to recruit more concentrators, noting that there is “lots of overlap” of material and interest with other departments and disciplines. She added that it makes sense that rising interest in BEO has corresponded with a drop in sociology concentrators, given the similar appeal of the subjects. Students pursuing the sociology concentration indicated the department’s strengths come from its personalized focus on concentrators. Sociology faculty members are inter-
ested in engaging students and providing “individualized” advising, said Eva Lindpaintner ’13, a double concentrator in sociology and education who is also a member of the sociology DUG. Lindpaintner said she believes double concentrators in sociology and another discipline are becoming more common because of the interdisciplinary nature of material taught in sociology courses. “Our breadth is part of our appeal, but it’s also part of our challenge in making our presence known,” Kennedy said, adding that the number of students double concentrating in sociology and another field has risen in recent years to about half of current concentrators. Economics and disciplines in the health sciences are the most common for double concentrations with sociology, Kennedy wrote in an email to The Herald. The inclusion of a sociology section on the new Medical College Admission Test has also spurred newfound interest
in sociology from students considering medical school, Kennedy wrote. The new MCAT will take effect in 2015, The Herald previously reported. Brendan McNally, associate director of the BEO program, highlighted the strong curricular connections between BEO and sociology. “If you’re interested in businesses or organizations, understanding theory, what motivates people, what is leadership — that is gold when you come out into the business world,” McNally said, adding that BEO courses often have sociology concepts “embedded” within them. “More numbers (of concentrators) are definitely welcome,” Rogers said, citing the department’s relaxed academic and advising environment as valuable attributes that can “make students feel like they have a special place.” -With additional reporting by Molly Schulson
Economics sees growing pains as students look for ‘marketable skills’ Students perceive econ and applied matheconomics as degrees with job security By SARAH SACHS CONTRIBUTING WRITER
The numbers of economics and applied mathematics-economics concentrators have risen rapidly in the past few years, with many students motivated by a desire for post-collegiate job security and a growing interest in qualitative analysis. The number of economics concentrators rose from 158 in 2008 to 220 in 2012, according to data obtained by The Herald from the Office of Institutional Research. The number of applied math-economics concentrators also jumped, from 22 in 2008 to 48 in 2012. Though numbers for the class of 2013 are not final, economics currently stands unchanged at 220 concentrators in the senior class, with applied math-economics set to rise slightly to 52, University Registrar Robert Fitzgerald wrote in an email to The Herald. Having so many undergraduate concentrators “puts a lot of strain on our resources,” said Roberto Serrano, chair of the Department of Economics. “I don’t want to win this distinction.” The applied math department has
not faced difficulty with increased enrollments. The department has had to make minor adjustments but is not facing a lack of resources, said Govind Menon, associate professor and director of applied math undergraduate studies. “We’re just proud,” he said of the spike in concentrators. “Our goal is to sustain this.” ‘Hard to get attention’ The growing number of economics concentrators has made it difficult for students to access professors easily, said concentrator Alyssa Garrett ’15. “The classes are large, and it’s hard to get attention,” she said. The economics department expects that recently increased requirements will decrease the number of economics concentrators, said Louis Putterman, professor of economics and director of undergraduate economics studies. Starting with the class of 2016, concentrators must take a second semester of calculus and an additional class in econometrics. Serrano said he hopes the new requirements will also prevent “tourist” concentrators who add economics as a second concentration late in their junior and senior years. “I think professors are more focused with academia than teaching,” said Jessica Xu ’15, the leader of the economics Departmental Undergraduate Group. “I don’t think my ad-
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The growth of students concentrating in economics has put a strain on department resources, said Department Chair Roberto Serrano. viser really knows about me,” she added. Xu is trying to start a mentorship program for concentrators to help underclassmen navigate the department. “We try to attract faculty who are recognized for (scholarship),” Putterman said. “That could potentially be at odds with undergraduate teaching.” But Putterman said the department tries to “instill a culture” in its faculty that teaching is important, even though research is the “first priority” when it comes to hiring and tenure.
Serrano acknowledged that many students desire more interaction with their professors. “We do our best,” he said, citing an average student-teacher ratio of over 80-to-1 in economics courses. “I want everyone to appreciate the difficulties,” he said. About 2,500 students enroll in economics classes each semester, Serrano said. With only around 30 professors, Serrano said the department faces a uniquely challenging situation. Many first-years find the introductory classes challenging in such large
settings, said Tomas Navia ’16, who said he is considering changing his intended concentration from economics to political science. “The economics department needs to make an effort to make it seem like they care about students,” Navia said. Transforming perspectives Thomas Fink ’13, an economics concentrator, said students are generally satisfied with the skills the concentration teaches them. Many / / Econ page 10 students find
10 university news
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
Faculty exchange program fosters cross-cultural ties The program allows faculty members to exchange positions with international professors for a week By CORINNE SEJOURNE STAFF WRITER
University professors have the opportunity to “study abroad” with the Brown Global Forums, a program in which faculty members “exchange” with faculty members from international peer institutions for a week. Started two years ago, the program is an initiative of the Office of International Affairs which has coordinated with numerous universities around the world and is looking to continue expanding its connections, according to the OIA website. Matthew Gutmann, vice president for international affairs, said the program focuses on faculty members, as they are best able to create long-lasting and close ties with partner institutions. They are the “first step,” he said, in making connections that will benefit both the University and its students through classes, research
/ / Econ page 9 that economics teaches a different way of looking at the world, he said. “You try and play out decisions from a very rational perspective,” said applied math-economics concentrator Christopher Williams ’13. “You learn to think about opportunity costs and decisions.” Connor Sakwa ’15 is concentrating
opportunities and potential undergraduate and graduate exchanges. Gutmann said though Brown’s international teaching ties are not a new concept, the Global Forums are both new and unique. They function in a “very targeted fashion,” facilitating connections with “top schools in key regions of the world,” he said. The exchange requires “buy-in” from both sides, Gutmann said, adding that without the mutual interest of both departments the exchange will not take place. He said a significant financial commitment is required from participating departments, which host the peer institution’s faculty member for a week that includes lectures, classroom visits, meetings, meals and housing. Involvement and interest in the program have grown since 2011, Gutmann said, adding that he originally sought out faculty members to participate and now finds faculty members seeking involvement on their own.
“Many departments have participated,” with multiple participants from the engineering, sociology and applied math departments, wrote Diana Perdomo, international visit liaison, in an email to The Herald. Participating faculty members, both from the University and from peer institutions abroad, have praised the program. “I haven’t heard anything negative,” Gutmann said. Jessaca Leinaweaver, assistant professor of anthropology, exchanged with Professor Ceres Victora at the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul in Porto Alegre, Brazil. Leinaweaver, who works in Latin America but neither speaks Portuguese nor focuses on Brazil in her research, said the trip offered a “great opportunity to make global connectionss” and adds to the University’s international visibility. She said it was “eye-opening” to talk to and listen to graduate students talk about their diverse, interesting and high-quality research. Leinaweaver highlighted the important opportunity for physical contact and communication
that the Global Forums enable and said she will be part of another exchange in South Africa this summer. Kenneth Wong, professor of education, exchanged with Professor Hongqin Zhao of Zhejiang University in Hangzhou, China. He said the exchange provided him with the opportunity to understand how another university functions, the roles of professors, the types and relevance of research and how to best communicate his own department’s work. Wong said he believes the program will have “pretty wide-ranging implications in terms of the Brown impact and contribution in other countries around the world.” David Badre, assistant professor of cognitive, linguistic and pscychological sciences, traveled to two different schools in Turkey, exchanging with professor Fuat Balci of Koc University and Aysecan Boduroglu of Bogazici University. He said the forums were a “great experience” and offered the opportunity to interact with high-caliber science programs, facilitating feedback and col-
laboration. Badre said the program is a great way to improve the University’s visibility, adding there were more graduate students applying from Turkey to the University program this year. Two Bogazici professors — Amitav Sanyal and Atilla Yilmaz, professors of chemistry and mathematics, respectively — also described positive experiences with the Global Forums in emails to The Herald. Yilmaz wrote that one of the highlights of his trip was the discussions about math he had with his hosts — Kavita Ramanan and Paul Dupuis, both professors of applied mathematics — adding that “it was nice to find connections between our interests.” He wrote that the “experience overall was very pleasant.” Sanyal wrote that time spent with the chemistry department discussing science and challenges faced by chemistry programs made “the week fly by,” adding that he felt students, professors and universities would all benefit in the long run. “These kinds of programs certainly help to build and strengthen relationships.”
in economics but said he isn’t sure what he wants to do after graduation. “Economics is a major you can really do anything with,” he said. “It’s a major that allows you to take businessoriented classes and combine that with whatever else you want.” Many students choose to concentrate in economics because it provides analytical skills without being a hard science, Fink said. “Economics is a
really good tool for thinking about different things in the world,” he said, citing statistics and analytic abilities as particularly useful skills. But he added, “A lot of people are economics concentrators and don’t do that much work and get a degree that looks good after they graduate.” William Gregory ’16 said he is excited to concentrate in applied math-economics and learn about the
world’s political economy. He said understanding economics makes policies and human decisions clearer.
Senior Lecturer in Economics Rachel Friedberg said she has noticed more “anxiety” recently among students who are concerned about finding a job after college. “I think compared to 10 years ago — in the late ’90s, early 2000s — when things were much better in the economy, students were more relaxed,” she said. Over the past decade, firms have started to hire fewer people, BaumSnow said. As a result, he said, “the labor market is rewarding technical training more than it was 10 years ago.”
An eye toward the job market Garrett said it is difficult for students in the economics department to get a practical education in business. “It’s reflective of the fact that Brown is not as career-oriented as our peer institutions,” she said, adding that she would like to see more businessfocused classes and advising in the concentration. While teachers may provide courses that teach relevant skills and offer individual advice, Putterman said the department is not dedicated to preparing students for business. Students make a choice to come to a liberal arts college, he said. “We as a department are not in the business of career counseling,” he said, adding that advisers are nevertheless committed to helping students think about careers in the field. In her State of Brown address last month, President Christina Paxson said she thinks too many students have joined the economics concentration in recent years because they wanted job security, instead of having a genuine interest in the field. In response to student questions petitioning for more career-oriented elements in the concentration, Paxson — an economist herself — said a “pre-professional program is not very Brown-like.” In general, many students said they are concentrating in economics or applied math-economics because the degree and course of study will provide them with job security after graduation. “This concentration does prepare students with very marketable skills,” said Associate Professor of Economics and Urban Studies Nathaniel BaumSnow. “Coming to college and shelling out a quarter of a million dollars, you want to make sure you can get a job,” Garrett said. After the financial crash, many students realized they had to take tougher course loads to stay competitive in a poor job market, Baum-Snow said. “Students got more serious about job security after 2008,” he said.
Improving technical skills Many students hope that a degree in applied math-economics will distinguish them from other economics concentrators, said Katherine Sudol ’16. “I just don’t want to graduate with a really common degree like economics,” she said. “Applied math-economics makes me stand out. I am coming from a liberal arts school with a quantitative background.” Concentrating in economics without applied math involves significantly less math training, Fink said. “As an economics concentrator, you learn (statistical programming) and statistical analysis, but realistically a lot of concentrators have no idea,” he said. An applied math-economics degree allows employers to know that students have good technical skills and abilities, Williams said. Many students are able to pass through large economics classes without ever grasping the skills that are taught, Fink added. While these classes do have some dedicated students, “it’s way easier to get away with less work than in other majors,” he said. Serrano said the economics department is trying to increase the level of technical skills it requires from its concentrators through new requirements. “Someone with a concentration in economics should have analytical ability to tackle problems and analyze data,” he said. Menon said finance is not the only industry that requires skills in data analysis. “We live in a data-drenched society,” he said. “If you understand how to track it and use it in a effective way, it’s a great thing to do.”
arts & culture 11
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
It’s raining (straight, Lecture, workshop explore calligraphy 50 Brown and white) men in Leeds Over RISD students attended Sock and Buskin presents a play in progress by experimental playwright Young Jean Lee By ANDREW SMYTH SENIOR STAFF WRITER
If you are at all familiar with the work of Young Jean Lee, “the most adventurous playwright of her generation,” according to the New York Times, you might be surprised that her latest project is set in a tidy, middle-class living room occupied by four straight, white men. But Sock and Buskin’s latest offering, “Straight White Men,” a play in progress written and directed by Lee, subverts audience expectations, challenging viewers to engage with their prejudices about drama, race relations and gender politics. The play is in the early stages of an ongoing development process — Lee has spent the last six weeks in residency writing in dialogue with members of the cast and production. “Most of the script was developed out of improv and discussions with my cast, crew, dramaturg, associate director, assistant directors and dramaturgical board,” Lee wrote in an email to The Herald. “I directed the process and put the script together, but it was intensely collaborative.” Lee is no stranger to uncomfortable conversations and taboo material. “When starting a play, I ask myself, ‘What’s the last show in the world I would ever want to make?’” she wrote. “Then I force myself to make it.” Previously, she and her eponymous OBIE Award-winning theater company examined black identity politics in “The Shipment,” feminism and body image in “The Untitled Feminist Show” and Asian-American identity in “Song of the Dragons Flying to Heaven,” according to her website. “Straight White Men” is her latest effort, and Brown was a place to experiment with and develop her script, Lee wrote. “It will have a bunch more workshops. Then it’ll premiere at the Wexner Center in Ohio, tour internationally, premiere in New York in fall 2014 and then tour internationally some more,” she added. “I’m so impressed by the students at Brown,” Lee wrote. “They’re so perfectionistic yet have a uniquely pleasant vibe and don’t seem as depressingly neurotic as students on other campuses.”
The play as it stands now centers on three adult brothers — Matt, Jake and Drew, played by William Peterson ’14, Gerrit Thurston ’13 and Michael Chiboucas ’13.5 respectively — spending Christmas with their father, Ed, played by Zachary Segel ’13. Lee used the “well-made play,” a 19th-century dramatic genre, as a starting point for examining the straight, white, male identity, she wrote. Lee has worked on plays with nontraditional formats, Segel said. “But she chose to explore the topic of privilege and straight white maleness with naturalism and realism, because that’s kind of the straight white male of theater genres.” “I ended up sort of half-obeying the conventions in a way that doesn’t really work yet,” Lee said. This production is set in a living room adorned with upper-middleclass kitsch. There’s a table with expensive liquors, a fireplace hung with equidistant stockings and a rocking chair in the corner bearing the Harvard insignia. At one point, audience members hear the Yale Whiffenpoofs, an a cappella group, singing Christmas carols. The current iteration of the plot centers on Matt, the 44-year-old brother who has moved back in with his widowed father after finding himself unable to finish either Harvard Law School or a Ph.D. program in Russian Literature. Jake suggests the explanation for his failures lies in his experiences at his liberal arts college, where he was “brainwashed” by “ethnic studies classes.” “How does privilege work? What happens when one rejects his privilege and what does that look like?” asked Jarrett Key ’13, assistant director. “That became the basic frame for Matt.” The central puzzle Lee has set for herself seems to be why we should be interested in watching straight, white men talk about these issues at all. “The most challenging part was trying to make anyone care about my subject matter,” Lee said. “I still haven’t quite figured out how to pull that off.” “As soon as we start talking about politics, you can feel the audience cross their legs and say, ‘Well here we are, this is the patriarchy talking to me,’” Thurston said. “Which is amazing, because it’s not. It’s Young Jean Lee talking to you.” “Straight White Men” runs April 4-7, 10-12 and 14 in Leeds theater at 8 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays and 2 p.m Sundays.
Kazuaki Tanahashi’s calligraphy workshop By KIERA PELTZ CONTRIBUTING WRITER
“A great person makes a great calligrapher,” said Kazuaki Tanahashi, a world-renowned painter and calligrapher, in his lecture “The Zen Poet Ryokan” Wednesday in List 120. Sitting on a stool in front of about 60 attendees, Tanahashi gave off an air of tranquility as he spoke quietly about Ryokan’s life as a gifted calligrapher and poet. Listening intently, audience members took notes and laughed at his anecdotes emphasizing Ryokan’s carefree spirit. “In China, if your poem didn’t rhyme, they didn’t consider it a serious poem, but Ryokan didn’t care. He was free. He didn’t care if it wasn’t considered a poem,” Tanahashi said. Ryokan would often practice his calligraphy in the air because he couldn’t afford the necessary materials to write on paper. Because he was so poor, he felt free to live his life however he wished, Tanahashi explained. Ryokan taught Tanahashi to open
himself up to his own emotions, Tanahashi said. “Ryokan was so honest about his own emotions about being lonely, being loving and being sensitive to the changes of nature,” Tanahashi told The Herald. Tanahashi employed humorous anecdotes to further highlight Ryokan’s tendency to go beyond the norm. In one such tale, a wealthy man invited Ryokan into his home and forced him to do calligraphy. In an act of defiance, Ryokan did as the wealthy man asked but wrote the words, “I don’t want to. I don’t want to. I don’t want to” as his poem, Tanahashi said. “(Tanahashi) was a great storyteller and painted a great picture for us of who this poet was,” said Michaela Lewis ’13 who attended the lecture. Tanahashi is “someone who has a deep understanding of art and who also has a deep understanding of Buddhism,” said Larson Di Fiori GS. “The poet who he is lecturing on has a deep understanding of Buddhism and is also a very profound poet, so I think it’s very useful to hear from someone who has a very similar perspective talking about that.” Tanahashi began studying calligraphy after his poor handwriting required him to start practicing with a master, he told The Herald, adding that he later began doing oil paintings
and decided to combine the two. Tanahashi also led a calligraphy workshop Tuesday night at which he urged the students to embrace qualities in line with how Ryokan lived his life. At the calligraphy workshop, 55 Brown and RISD students, as well as community members, sat in a circle and worked on writing out characters of heaven and earth. Though Tanahashi said he believes technique matters, he insisted a person’s character has the greatest effect on a person’s calligraphy and urged the participants to avoid trying to achieve perfection. Instead, he encouraged them to let go and allow their minds and bodies to work together to create characters, said Wayne Assing, RISD’s director of Student Development and Counseling and an organizer of the event. Tanahashi provided a “humanistic and artistic linkage” that fits the mission of the contemplative studies department, which was founded in 2006, said Harold Roth, director of contemplative studies and professor of religious and East Asian studies. Both events were sponsored by Brown’s contemplative studies department, the Rhode Island School of Design painting department and RISD student development, according to Brown’s contemplative studies website.
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12 university news / / State page 1 Obama entered office with a desire to build “constructive, balanced partnerships,” she said. Jacobson said the United States undeniably benefits from increased economic prosperity and political stability in the Western hemisphere. More than 40 percent of United States exports go to countries in the region, and this trade supports 4 million United States jobs, she said. The Western hemisphere affects United States national security and foreign policy to a greater degree than China or Russia ever will, Jacobson said, but she added that she recognizes hers is “an unpopular opinion.” “The hemisphere makes a striking range of contributions on the global stage,” Jacobson said. Canada provides leadership in NATO and played a particularly important role in Libya, and Uruguay contributes the most money per capita to United Nations peacekeeping operations of any country in the world, she said. Jacobson said Costa Rica initiated the landmark arms trade treaty passed at the United Nations General Assembly Tuesday, adding that Mexico’s leadership in the last three months helped to “get it across the finish line.”
Jacobson said Kerry will steer the State Department to focus on energy — an issue in which Latin America, a major oil exporter, is poised to play a major role — and education, which she said “underpins everything else we’re trying to do.” Government initiatives already aim to address these issues in Latin America, like the State Department’s Connecting the Americas 2022 initiative, which has committed to providing affordable electricity to all citizens in the Americas within the next decade, Jacobson said. Obama organized the Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas in 2009, she said, and his 100,000 Strong in the Americas program aims to promote educational exchanges between the United States and Latin America and the Caribbean through sending 100,000 students each year from the U.S. to Latin America and the Caribbean and vice versa. The final pillar of the State Department’s agenda under Kerry will be advancing democracy in the region, Jacobson said. “It’s my responsibility to speak out clearly and without hesitation when fundamental democratic principles are threatened,” she said. “We cannot be the lone voice of dissent when democracy is threatened in the hemisphere.”
At the special General Assembly of the Organization of American States last month, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights came under fire from a “determined but small group of governments” that attempted to undermine its legitimacy, Jacobson said. The State Department decided the comission needed reform but “remains an enormous force for good in the hemisphere, deserves defending and should continue to be strengthened and fully funded,” she said. The special OAS General Assembly resolved to maintain the commission’s funding in full and to preserve its independence, she added. Jacobson praised the University for creating the Watson Institute, which did not exist when she was an undergraduate. She said that when she was at Brown, the political events in Latin America made it a compelling time for a political science student to study the region. As an undergraduate, Jacobson double concentrated in political science and Latin American Studies — an independent concentration she designed. Jacobson encouraged students to consider careers in the federal government, especially the State Department and United States Agency for International Development.
www.browndailyherald.com
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
Q&A with Roberta Jacobson ’82 Herald: How do you think your Brown education prepared you for your work at the State Department? Jacobson: It was quite useful. ... I did political science, but I also designed — because at the time it didn’t exist — a Latin American studies major, drawing from language and political science and anthropology and sociology and things like that. And that desire to focus on the (Western) hemisphere and the ability to experiment at Brown — I just can’t overestimate that. ... I hate to sound probably like everyone else who talks about Brown, but the reason you can do that experimentation is the New Curriculum. ... It’s not like I was doing something incredibly radical, but still, there was encouragement for that kind of experimentation intellectually and academically that was thrilling to me. Did you know when you came to Brown that you had a specific interest in Latin America or in working in government, or is that something that developed over the course of your time on campus? No, it definitely developed while I was here. I came from parents who believed strongly in public service, so going into government always seemed like an option, but what I would do wasn’t clear. The focus on Latin America was almost accidental. I was working on political science. I knew I wanted international affairs, and I thought it would be good if I specialized in one part of the world, and I originally thought I wanted Asia. But I spoke a little Spanish already ... and so that combined, as
I said, with the fact that politically what was happening in Latin America almost seemed like, you know, a poli sci lab for creations of democracy and democratic transitions. Your focus has been Latin America and Western hemisphere affairs. Recently, Hugo Chavez died. How do you think that his death has affected or will affect the region — Venezuela, South America, the United States’ relationship with the region? It’s still early days and hard to tell, because especially in this electoral climate in Venezuela, there is quite honestly still a hagiography and a nostalgia for Chavez that is almost all-consuming. ... It will be interesting to see who replaces Chavez at the head of that sort of populist, leftist wing of countries, and I don’t know that anyone can. ... He had the ability to convince people of a national and regional project that I’m not sure any other leader has, especially with Fidel Castro essentially gone from the scene for the last few years. I don’t know how the relationship will change bilaterally. Obviously a lot depends on how the elections go in 10 days. ... I reached out to Vice President Nicolas Maduro to see if we couldn’t restart a productive dialogue on some issues where I think we have some mutual desire to advance: counternarcotics, counterterrorism efforts, maybe areas like commercial relationships. And there was a real desire from the Venezuelan government to do that, but then Chavez took a turn for the worse. ... So nothing’s going to happen until after these elections, and then obviously depending on who wins, we will see whether we can begin to have that better relationship. ... The Obama administration has made clear from the beginning, whether it’s Bolivia or Ecuador or Venezuela, we would like to have a positive relationship. And to varying degrees, each of those countries has said, “No, thank you. We don’t think that’s useful to us right now.” I think that’s too bad. ... We’re not going to force ourselves on anybody. There are lots of countries in the hemisphere who want to continue to engage with us on a lot of different things, and we will hope for the day when we can improve the relationship with Venezuela. You used to work specifically on Mexican affairs. Immigration reform has been a major topic of discussion in the U.S. recently. How do you think the relationship between the U.S. and Mexico will develop in terms of both immigration and the illicit drug trade? I’ve worked on Mexico extensively now for 10 years or so. ... The relationship is incredibly deep now, and the cooperation is becoming automatic ... cooperation on everything from environment to security. But there are two domestic issues, which, if moved, will make a huge difference in our foreign policy. ... One, obviously, is comprehen/ / Q&A page 13
sports friday 13
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
/ / Shaw page 16 all of New York’s defense last year as his teammates did their best impressions of tackle dummies on that end of the floor. On offense, he sets hard screens and rolls to the rim with similar zest. Chandler is also fine being surrounded by ball-dominant players like Rondo, James and Durant. His 67.9 field goal percentage last year was the third best of all time, meaning that he will only take smart shots that he can reliably finish and pass the ball back out when he can’t. A Tribe Called Bench Guard: Tony Parker. A year ago, Chris Paul would hold this spot, but the Frenchman has put together such a strong body of work this year that he too vaults ahead of Paul. As the coordinator of the bench, Parker can flat-out score as his points-per-game has improved to 20.9 while Paul’s actually declined three points. There’s also the issue of durability. Paul currently has no cartilage in his knees while Parker only occasionally gets in fights with Drake and Chris Brown. To seal the deal, Parker is actually okay with coming off the bench, while Paul is too American to do the same. Guard: Kobe Bean Bryant. Killer instinct. As long as he keeps getting mystery German supertreatments, Kobe’s going to play like he’s 10 years
/ / Q&A page 12 sive immigration reform. If that gets passed, which I’m very optimistic about and I know the president is for this year, that’s going to be enormous, very positive. But the second is if we can do anything on gun control, which we have not been able to do or even really debate in years. And Mexico, like Central America and the Caribbean, has been very critical of the flow of illicit guns to their countries. ... Both (immigration reform and gun control) help us deal with the security problem of transnational criminal organizations. And I tend to call them that rather than just drug cartels ... because ... where they’ve been under heavy threat or they haven’t been able to traffic in certain areas of Mexico, they don’t just go away. They get into other criminal activities: extortion, kidnapping for ransom, trafficking in persons. So we shouldn’t kid ourselves that if we solve the narcotics issues, all these guys will become Boy Scouts. ... If you’ve got a border that is not being crossed by thousands of people coming here for economic reasons, you can concentrate on the people who are moving contraband of any sort. And you can partner with Mexico on that, because the really heavy, emotional issue of illegal migration is removed ... You’ve got a guest workers program, and you’ve got a legalization of the folks
younger. More importantly, Kobe’s locker room presence and Jordanlike addiction to competition should elevate everyone else’s play. He will knock you out and curb stomp you when you’re down. Mamba. Forward: Serge Ibaka. You want more interior defense? Have some more interior defense. Finger wag included. Forward: Dirk Nowitzki. Pickand-roll. Pick-and-pop. The patented Nowitzki drop-back-ballerinafoot-in-the-air jumper. Just imagine closing a game with Parker, Kobe, Durant, LeBron and Nowitzki. Who does a defense try to lock down? “I’m a cop, you idiot.” Deep bench: Brian Scalabrine. This isn’t technically part of the rotation, but if this super team ends up blowing out the aliens, you’ll want a garbage-time guy to soak up the minutes and who does that better than Scal. From the signature stepback pony jumper to the awkward two-hand lay-in, Scal’s got the whole bag of tricks. I want him. You want him. The crowd wants him. Mamba. Deeper bench: Bill Murray. If you have to ask, you wouldn’t understand. Manager: That chicken dance kid from Florida Gulf Coast. Who doesn’t love a Cinderella story? Starting five: Rondo-DurantJames-Love-Chandler. Bench mob: Parker-Kobe-IbakaNowitzki-Scal-Murray. who are in the United States. What do you think is the most pressing issue in the Western hemisphere right now and what might it be five years from now? In terms of the most pressing issue now, it’s kind of two-fold. ... One is incredibly strong growth in the Western hemisphere, especially South America, over the last 10 years ... Fifty-six million people moved into the middle class over the last 15 years. How do you expand that to millions of people who still live in poverty? ... How do you expand that and sustain it? And there I think the key is education, where education is not keeping pace with the global economy. ... That’s one of the huge challenges that we have now and will still have in five years ... to get more young people educated, capable of really competing in today’s economy. And that, I think, has an impact on the second huge challenge, which is the issue of citizen security, which many people in the hemisphere put at the top of the things they are most worried about, even before the economy. ... We talk about youth at risk. They’re at risk because they don’t see an alternative. They’re not educated to participate in the legal workforce ... I don’t see that as going away. -Michael Dubin See browndailyherald.com for the extended Q&A.
/ / Stats page 16 over 100 years ago, is like taking a pile of change and just counting the number of coins rather than separating the nickels from the dimes. It should be blatantly obvious that a home run is worth more than a single, but batting average makes no such distinction. Over the last several decades, many statisticians have built more nuanced substitutes for batting average that distinguish between outcomes beyond the oversimplified binary of hits and outs. The best-known metric today is weighted on-base average, which puts singles, doubles, triples, home runs, walks and even hit-by-pitches on the same scale to estimate how many runs a hitter produces. Unfortunately there are no nonproprietary examples of these statistics available for college baseball, but there are two better alternatives to batting average that are at our disposal: on-base percentage, the proportion of a batter’s plate appearances in which he reaches
base safely — basically batting average that includes walks — and slugging percentage, the measure of a hitter’s total bases per at-bat (a single is one base, a double is two bases, etc.). The two are often combined to make on-base plus slugging percentage, a crude but pretty good measure of a player’s overall hitting ability. As an example of how these statistics tell a different story than batting average, let’s turn to the final stat sheets for the 2012 Brown Bears. Of the 10 hitters who got at least 75 plate appearances last year, third baseman Nick Fornaca ’15 led the way with a .328 batting average. But, despite hitting just .318, first baseman Cody Slaughter ’13 was the team’s best hitter because he led the Bears in both on-base percentage with a .403 and slugging percentage with a .496. In a similar vein, designated hitter Mike DiBiase ’12 ranked dead-last among Brown regulars with a .256 batting average, but his power helped him to a .419 slugging percentage, higher than the team average of .394, and his team-leading 26 walks
COMIC Join the Club | Simon Henriques
boosted his on-base percentage to .401, the second highest on the roster. Though it is too early for the sample sizes to be significant, we can also apply this thinking to the Bears’ current season. Using statistics current as of Wednesday, outfielder and designated hitter Daniel Massey ’14 currently leads the team with a .367 batting average, but Slaughter with a .387 and right fielder Will Marcal ’15 with a .371 have gotten on base at a higher rate than Massey with a .365. In fact, due to a peculiarity in how batting average is calculated — sacrifice hits are not counted as at-bats in the denominator so as to encourage batters to put the team interest ahead of individual success — Massey’s OBP is actually lower than his batting average. There’s still a month left of Brown baseball and nearly a full MLB season yet to be played. I hope this will give you some better perspective on how good the players are the next time you’re at the ballpark. Next week, we’ll take a look at pitching statistics and why they may be even worse.
14 diamonds & coal DIAMONDS & COAL
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
EDITORIAL CARTOON b y a n g e l i a wa n g
Cubic zirconia to the student who said, “I’m a bit of a neophyte when it comes to web visibility, but I’m learning.” Step one: Clear your browsing history often. Coal to Professor of Neuroscience Barry Connors, chair of the department, who said, “It’s not clear to me why anyone would study something other than the brain.” You would think studying the brain might help you figure that out. A diamond to the student who said, “I had a coffee milk pop, and it made my day.” If that’s the case, we bet Red Bull ice cream will make your week. Coal to the supporters of housing assistance legislation who dressed as Dorothy, the Tin Man, the Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion for a rally at the State House. There has to be a better way to jumpstart their acting careers. A diamond to Rep. Edith Ajello, D-Providence, who said, “If voters arrived on time and are faced with a line, if they’re willing to stand in to do their civic duty, they shouldn’t be turned away.” If only someone would tell the DMV. Cubic zirconia to Dean of the College Katherine Bergeron, who said the University needs to pursue “a variety of pathways” in innovating science education. May we suggest starting with the Krebs Cycle? A diamond to David Sherry, chief information security officer, who said “it is inherent in the Internet that email is unsafe.” That’s why we always make sure we’re wearing our full-body armor before logging into our Gmail accounts. A diamond to the actor in “Straight White Men” who said, “As soon as we start talking about politics, you can feel the audience cross their legs and say, ‘Well here we are, this is the patriarchy talking to me.’” Either that, or they just really needed to use the restroom before intermission. Cubic zirconia to Rep. John Edwards, D-Tiverton and Portsmouth, who said marijuana decriminalization will “prevent a youthful indiscretion from ruining a person’s life.” Edwards will now seek to shut down all Tinder accounts. Coal to the professor who asked, “How many times have you stopped to look at something and thought about its chemicals?” Every time we sample the Sharpe Refectory’s vegan nuggets.
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QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Seeing the spicy with ... as you’re going to the salad bar (is) so depressing.” — Broghan Zwack ‘16 See spicy on page 3. facebook.com/browndailyherald
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taking sides 15
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
Should Brown have a business degree? YES
NO
compromised by committing to a pre-protrack. This is not true — many unELIZABETH fessional dergraduate business programs require stuFUERBACHER dents to enroll in classes unrelated to their majors. At Penn, for example, Whartonites Opinions Columnist must also take a healthy dose of School of Arts and Sciences courses. Furthermore, business education is fundamental to being Brown is not the Wharton School of Busi- a well-educated individual. We should know ness, nor does the administration want how the organizations around us function, Brown to emulate Wharton — but our col- whether they be hospitals, non-profits, corlege should rethink this decision. Having porate conglomerates, retail franchises or transferred from Wharton, I know what even universities such as Brown itself. makes an undergraduate business program, Accessing actual business professors and the advantages of this experience and the classes through which students can learn drawbacks borne by a more tailored edu- more about investment choices, capital budcation. In its quest to maintain the integri- geting and management decisions does not ty of Brown’s liberal attenuate one’s unarts ethos, the Uni- We should know how the derstanding of the versity has shunned On the conorganizations around us world. pre-professionalism trary, these opporand patent attempts function, whether they tunities and outlets to move toward such would enhance our be hospitals, nonprofits, wisdom and abilities an approach. But Brown is also digest and analyze corporate conglomerates, to distinguished by its current affairs. Even progressive attitude retail franchises or even humanities concenand willingness to trators should unaccept change in the universities such as Brown derstand the meface of increasing chanics of quantitaitself. workplace complexitive easing and inties, evolving scholastic needs and malleable cipient implications for future interest rates. student preferences. A business degree is For the sake of personal edification, Brown not solely practical for aspiring investment students would be well-served to familiarize bankers and corporate raiders. Given the ro- themselves with accounting, financial marbust interest in entrepreneurship at Brown, kets, corporate law and firm behavior. These the utility of understanding corporations skill sets should be tested in contexts more that surround us and the growing competi- structured and practical than economic thetion in the labor market, Brown should fur- ory classes. Whether we proceed to finance, nish its offerings with a business degree. law, medicine, engineering, charity or the Among the arguments against under- arts, supporting business education with graduate business education — and pre- a business degree would reinforce Brown’s professionalism in general — is the conten- reputation for embracing students’ needs tion that students should spend their college and producing adaptable, well-rounded alcareers becoming well-rounded scholars. ums. Stalwart defenders of strict liberal arts curricula believe these four years should give us a broad understanding of many disciplines Elizabeth Fuerbacher ’14 enjoys Brown while allowing us to cultivate specialized but will always defend the Wharton steknowledge through one or two majors. In reotype of hyper-ambitious undergrads their support of this philosophy and a rejechoping to be the next Carl Icahn or Dontion of more career-driven paths, they feel ald Trump. She can be reached at that a solid grasp of several subject areas is elizabeth_fuerbacher@Brown.edu.
truly necessary for life in favor of teaching them subjects that are often best learned ZACH INGBER on the job. A 2009 study by the National Association of Colleges and Employers Opinions Columnist revealed that the skills workplaces value most are best obtained through a liberal arts education. Moreover, it is not the responsibility of an undergraduate instituIn this time of heightened anxiety arising tion to train students for specific jobs — from a precarious job market, many push that would be vocational training. for undergraduate institutions to offer deBrown has the responsibility to engrees that will better prepare them for a courage students to study disciplines that seemingly unforgiving real world. But an will cause us to think in ways applicable undergraduate business degree not only to any career area — this is evidenced by, runs antithetical to a liberal arts educa- for example, the success of physics contion but also does not adequately impart centrators on Wall Street. A liberal arts the necessary critical thinking skills and institution, through its academic concenopen-mindedness to trations, teaches prepare Brown stustudents general A liberal arts institution, yet essential skills dents for life beyond College Hill. that can be used in through its academic The University any job, graduate has established its concentrations, teaches school or career. goals for a Brown That is the definistudents general yet education in what it tion of preparing calls “Liberal Learn- essential skills that can be students for life afing at Brown.” This ter college. criterion was estab- used in any job, graduate A concentralished for students to tion in business school or career. realize that studying is a pre-profesany academic dissional degree that cipline can convey invaluable skills best puts blinders on one’s undergraduate exunderstood only in the undergraduate perience. It only provides skills that are college environment. From neuroscience narrow in scope and inapplicable to the to comparative literature, every concen- plethora of career paths Brown graduates tration at Brown allows students to gain pursue. A business concentration encourknowledge unattainable at times other ages students to make huge life decisions than during undergraduate studies. before graduating college while mistakenThese goals simply cannot be achieved ly absolving them from fulfilling the goals with an undergraduate business de- for a liberal education that teach comgree. The ability to comprehend different munication, cultural sensitivity and intelworldviews, embrace diversity and engage lectual curiosity. If one cannot balance a with what the University deems “symbolic checkbook without a business degree, that languages” are essential experiences that a is another issue. business degree cannot offer. My opponent and others argue that regardless of any administration-deterZach Ingber ’15 is a history concentramined academic goals, a business degree tor who thinks he would be well suited better prepares you for the workforce. to work for a start-up, though potential This is fundamentally wrong. A business employers might have to deal with an concentration’s narrow scope precludes occasional rant about the Soviet Union. students from learning the breadth of He can be reached at communication, analytics and other skills zachary_ingber@brown.edu.
Ingber’s Rebuttal
Fuerbacher’s Rebuttal
Fuerbacher ’14 offers several benefits of an undergraduate business degree, such as financial literacy and investment knowledge. But she fails to explain why business should be a concentration. All of the aforementioned expertise can be gained by reading the Wall Street Journal or conversing with educated professors. Fuerbacher has not met her burden of proving what unique skills a business degree offers that cannot be gained through a liberal arts education. Comprehension of markets can be strengthened by POLS 1415: “Classics of the Political Economy” or ECON 1720: “Corporate Finance.” Fuerbacher does not describe any unique features of a business degree that justify introducing a narrow, pre-professional degree. My peer’s argument actually reinforces my assertion that a business degree and Brown’s philosophy cannot coexist. Her comparison to the Wharton School explains that Wharton requires students to take classes in disciplines outside of business. Brown prides itself on the Open Curriculum, and any concentra-
tion that would require classes outside the discipline to counterbalance its limited scope runs counter to what the Brown education stands for. A business major would be akin to someone concentrating in “pre-med” or “pre-law,” pre-professional constructs that should not constitute an academic degree. Learning why the Federal Reserve purchases treasuries is important but does not justify a business concentration. I ask Fuerbacher: What skills can a business degree impart that are generally applicable to myriad fields? Learning how to invest money is certainly an important skill, but so is balancing a checkbook. A Brown education does more than teach competence at various tasks. Fuerbacher is correct about one thing: Brown has no desire to become Wharton. A business degree has no place at Brown. It is incompatible with Brown’s academic philosophy and educational goals. I don’t feel that I need a business degree to become the next Carl Icahn. Apparently, neither did he. Icahn graduated with a degree in philosophy.
To clarify sweeping assumptions about business education, Brown would not become a haven for strictly focused students were our university to offer a bachelor’s degree in business. We would merely furnish students with another set of core classes and engaging electives. Ingber ’15 writes that a business degree “provides skills that are narrow in scope and not applicable to the plethora of career paths Brown graduates pursue.” This incorrectly implies a restricted applicability of such coursework and conveys a misunderstanding of what undergraduate business education can provide. As my opponent noted, Brown alums pursue many different professional paths. In this startup-obsessed era, entrepreneurship attracts student interest. Whether socially driven or technologyfocused, a desire to establish one’s own business or initiative is a prevailing sentiment on campus. Sound management principles, knowledge of capital budgeting and business strategy are important concepts for our students to grasp at the start of their journeys. One might argue
our economics concentration or entrepreneurship courses satisfy this need, but hiring business education faculty members would corroborate preparation available to students. It would be complacent to suggest we neither need nor desire pre-professional coursework because we succeed in internship and career quests. Our robust creativity and deep intellectual capacities should be cultivated through more technical training. It is a shame when employers at banking or consulting information sessions caution, “We don’t expect Brown students to know much about stocks,” or “People from Wharton and Stern know much more than you, so study up before interviewing.” Why not shatter these expectations by having classes that communicate this information? To conclude that pre-professional education and the ability to digest many facets of the world are mutually exclusive is misguided. A business degree would enhance students’ knowledge and allow us to use practical classes to achieve our post-graduation goals.
daily herald sports friday THE BROWN
FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2013
SABERMETRICS Space Jam 2013: NBA to the rescue All you know about baseball
TOM SHAW Sports Columnist A few weeks ago, I delivered an in-depth analysis of the timeless classic, “Space Jam.” The modern epic in which Michael Jordan and the Looney Tune bunch take on the bad guys in some classic five-on-five action made me wonder: Who in today’s NBA would represent us in a doomsday/basketball scenario? Seeing as I’m completely unqualified to write about baseball, let’s roll with it. The framework for this team will be nine players — a solid playoff rotation — who can actually play together. Unlike an All-Star team, these won’t be five ball-dominant, no-defense chuckers. And just like in the ’92 Olympics, Isaiah Thomas will have nothing to do with this team. The Starters The obvious starting point is LeBron James. He’s the best basketball player on the planet right now and arguably the best athlete. Assuming the aliens take on mammoth proportions, this team is playing big, making James a lock as the starting small forward. He’s versatile enough to play in the post or on the perimeter, can guard every position and can provide instant production anywhere with the exception of Cleveland. For those who didn’t watch the Bulls-Heat game that ended Miami’s 27-game winning streak, James actually let Kirk Hinrich drive by, so James would be in better position to block the layup. Let me say that again. James is so good that he actually encourages shot attempts so he can make plays!
Forget Der Struwwelpeter — German children hide under their sheets in fear that James will emerge from the closet to swat their shots. The only knock on James is that he will probably take his talents to the alien team if they have a better chance at a championship. Spreading the floor for James’ post attack is Kevin Love, who, when healthy, is the league’s most ferocious rebounder and a dead-eye shooting big man. Love can crash the boards on both ends, earning crucial second-chance opportunities — unlike in “Space Jam” where every shot magically goes in. More importantly, his shooting prowess will force opposing bigs to move out of the paint, opening up space for James to bang down low and guards to penetrate and dish. Love doesn’t need to have the ball to be effective and would happily take a smaller role to play on a good team. Every locker room needs a great beard, and Love will be happy just to be in the building. While this choice may be unorthodox, I’m starting Kevin Durant at the two-guard. At 6 feet 9 inches, he’d stand a head taller than most NBA shooting guards, but he’s too talented not to start, he plays like a wing, he’s got enough length and control to not be a complete defensive liability against blow-bys from smaller players (which is further negated by our rim protector, whom I’m about to get to), and we’re playing against aliens, so who cares? There’s a reason Durant has led the league in scoring for the past three years — he can put the ball in the hole from anywhere on the court and does so efficiently. Like the ’09 Orlando Magic team that surrounded Dwight Howard with pure shooters, a team of Durant sharing the court with four plus-defenders would probably be A-okay.
Who to select as point guard actually turned out to be the toughest decision, but I’m going with Rajon Rondo. There’s no doubt that Chris Paul is the best point in the NBA right now (Tony Parker is maniacally shaking his head), but Rondo is the best fit for this particular team. Rondo is also prideful enough that he’d rather watch the world burn than come off the bench. Rondo quietly found a consistent jump shot before his season-ending ACL injury, and the reality is that on a team with so many pure scorers, a pure point with solid distribution skills is far more valuable — Steve Nash would own this spot, but there’s no time travelling in this scenario. Sorry, Canada. Celtics fans will note, though, that Rondo can be incredibly frustrating to watch. He is a Mozart-level genius in finding passing lanes and incredibly effective in the pick-and-roll game — sometimes. As Bill Simmons of Grantland perfectly describes it, there’s “Local Cable Rondo” and “National TV Rondo” — two identities as distinct and opposite as Jekyll and Hyde. If people aren’t watching, we’ll have the basketball equivalent of a pouty teenage girl bringing the ball down the court. Luckily, with the freedom of the world at stake, it’s safe to say we’re getting the version that records triple-doubles at a freakish rate before silently staring down the media as he sulks in the locker room. Anchoring the starting five is Tyson Chandler. The man is a paint-clogging defensive juggernaut and would be a great pick-and-roll partner for Rondo. The same can describe Howard, except Tyson actually cares about, you know, winning basketball games. (Chandler also does not carry Stephen A. Smith in a baby Bjorn. Fact.) Chandler basically / / Shaw page 13 accounted for
statistics is wrong: Hitting By LEWIS POLLIS SPORTS COLUMNIST
The theatrical release of “Moneyball” in 2011 marked the first time many baseball fans — as well as non-sports enthusiasts — were ever exposed to the next generation of baseball statistics, affectionately known as sabermetrics. With the college baseball season well underway and Major League Baseball just getting started, now is the perfect time to explain some of these new ways of thinking about the game, starting today with hitting. Conventional hitting numbers may be the easiest family of baseball statistics to understand, but that doesn’t mean the stats you’ll find on a baseball card are worth much. Luckily, sabermetrics has been able to quantify batting better than any other major aspect of the game, though these advances have yet to be publicly applied at the college level. Arguably the most meaningless popular statistic is runs batted in (RBI), the number of baserunners that come across home plate to score as the result of a hitter’s batted balls. As a matter of storytelling, it makes sense to take note of who knocks in whom within a game. But this is less effective as a measure of skill over the course of a season. The obvious problem that even highprofile baseball analysts overlook is that not all hitters have the same opportunities to drive batters in. This situation is similar to that of “clutch” hitters. While some argue that certain clutch hitters possess the preternatural ability to come up with big hits in important situations, it is generally accepted among the sabermetric community that clutchness is far
less a factor in those situations than overall skill and random chance — if it exists at all. Those hitters with especially good clutch statistics are usually creations of small sample sizes. Looking at runs scored as a measure of a player’s skill is a similar conflation of individual performance and circumstances beyond the batter’s control. Reaching base and getting in position to score is something for which a hitter could justly be credited, but obviously he has nothing to do with the subsequent batters’ abilities to drive him in. Perhaps the most misunderstood statistic in baseball is batting average, if only because of its pervasiveness. A player who hits .300 is universally understood to be a very good hitter. It takes a true legend to hit .400 and someone batting under .200 — the so-called Mendoza Line — will probably be benched in short order. A closer look at the iconic statistic reveals some major problems rendering it ill-suited for judging a player. Aside from the luck of how batted balls bounce affecting batting average and leading to averages taking a long time to stabilize, the most obvious problem with batting average is that it does not include walks. As those who saw — or better yet, read — “Moneyball” know, the specific ability to get hits is not as important as the more generic ability to get on base. A batter who goes 30-for-100 with no walks is not as valuable as a hitter who goes 20-for-80 with 20 free passes. Maybe more importantly, batting average treats all hits — singles, doubles, triples and home runs — as equal. This, as baseball writer F.C. Lane famously / / Stats page 13 analogized
ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Willig ’16 burns up the track at Stanford By LLOYD SY SPORTS STAFF WRITER
HOME GAMES THIS WEEKEND FRIDAY
W. Water Polo vs. Marist 4 p.m. @ Aquatic Center W. Water Polo vs. Hartwick 8:30 p.m. @ Aquatic Center SATURDAY
W. Lacrosse vs. Harvard 12 p.m. @ Stevenson Field Baseball vs. Penn 12 p.m. @ Murray Stadium M. Lacrosse vs. Penn 3 p.m. @ Stevenson Field SUNDAY
W. Lacrosse vs. Bryant 2 p.m. @ Stevenson Field (Ocean State Cup) Baseball vs. Columbia 12 p.m. @ Murray Stadium Baseball vs. Columbia 3 p.m. @ Murray Stadium
Ned Willig ’16 may be a newcomer to the men’s track and field team, but he is already making his presence known both on the squad and in the Ivy League. At the Stanford Invitational last weekend, Willig ran the 800-meter run in 1 minute, 50.20 seconds, tying Gbolahan Fatuga ’96 for the third-fastest time in school history. Willig’s time was also the second-fastest time recorded in the Ivy League this season. He continued to impress at Stanford by crossing the finish line of the 1500-meter run in 3:45.53, the best performance among all Ivy League runners this year and the eighth best in Brown’s history. For his impressive runs, Willig has been named The Herald’s Athlete of the Week. Herald: How does it feel to start off the season so successfully? Willig: As the first event of the spring track season, I’m very happy with how I started. It’s a good place moving forward. Starting on a good note is always helpful, especially in gaining some confidence. The mental aspect of track is a really big part. You mentioned the mental aspect. What do you think about while you’re running? Really, it’s more not thinking for me.
After so much training, you get into the habit of just running without thinking and just staying relaxed. What do you hope to achieve this season? I’d like to qualify for nationals. To do that, I have to place at the regional meet in the top 10 or something.
What’s the best part about being on the track team? Really, it’s just being in a group of people. The team is my closest group of friends. So track and field is as much a team sport as any other sport? Definitely. Everyone’s working to score points for the team. One of my favorite meets of the entire season is the Heptagonal Championships — which is basically the Ivy League Championships — and it’s fun because everyone is really focused on working together to get a good team score. You’re also on the cross country team. How is training different for the two seasons? Cross country is obviously more distance-oriented, so we take longer runs. Scientifically, we do a lot more aerobic exercises in cross country, while track involves some of those anaerobic exercises.
COURTESY OF NED WILLIG
Willig leads the 1000-meter run at the indoor Heptagonal Championships, ultimately winning the race with a time of 2 minutes, 25 seconds. Why did you pick Brown? The academic freedom really appealed to me, but also, when I visited the track team, I really liked the teammates. Running was going to be a big factor for my college choice, and Brown had a good team atmosphere. Coach (Tim) Springfield, too, seemed elite above (other collegiate coaches). What are your favorite things to do here? I guess whatever a college kid likes to do. I like hanging out with friends.
And also learning — I study geology. I really enjoy learning about the natural processes of the earth and how all of them are interconnected, although I’m not sure yet what I want to do with it. You live in Perkins. Do you gain an advantage by having to walk back and forth? It can definitely be tough at 7 o’clock in the morning when you have to go and run. I do like living here, as it’s a close community where you can come back at night and just talk to super friendly people.